Jade Eyes
by Aliet Faslami
Summary: A short Fic. Stars another fancharacter of mine and the Tallest. Red discovers someone new in the Tallest Complex... what will become of her?
1. Discovery

Hey! It's me again! This fic has nothing to do-okay, almost nothing to do with my other one, Collateral Damage. I just had this idea the other day in science class. Anyway, this is set in Irk's future and contains maybe... oh, one little tinny spoiler for one part of my later fics. It's not that obvious though... so, without further ado, my fic dedicated to the two genetic freaks of the galaxy, The Almighty Tallest!  
(Jendai: What about me?)  
(AF: Aww, ya know I luv you too 'Dai! [huggles him])  
(Zim: Hey!)  
(AF: I luv you both!)  
(Irkens: Ok)  
  
Jade Eyes   
  
  
"And in conclusion... um... in conclusion... Lazers!"  
Annoyed, Purple slammed the electronic pen down on the table separating them. "I don't see why I bother helping you if all you're ever going to say is 'lazers'," he growled. He glared over at the Soldier Tallest. "This is supposed to be about the changes we're making over the rule of the planets Invaders have conquered. NOT about lazers."  
"Aw, c'mon Pur," Red groaned, shooting a bored look over his shoulder. He was reclined in his chair, feet propped up against the wall of the meeting room the two had locked themselves in until their speech was done. The duo had originally assumed it would take about an hour, but at the rate they were going, the thing wouldn't be finished in time for anything. "They're Invaders, all Invaders like lazers. It's just your Class that agrees with you."  
"Yes, and my Class accounts for over half of Irk's population." Purple sighed, picking the pen back up. He tapped it against the data pad, frowning in concentration. "Maybe we should just leave this to the shorter things."  
Red spun around in his chair, facing Purple for the first time in five hours. "I don't see why you agreed to write this on our own in the first place," he grumbled. "It's so much easier when shorties do it." He stood up, waiting for Purple to join him. "I'm bored, let's go."  
This produced a chuckle from the other Tallest. "You mean you weren't bored the minute we came in here?" he chided. Red rolled his eyes, exiting the room. Purple grinned to himself, knowing Red would wait for him before heading up to the top floor of the complex. Alone for the moment, he set the pad down, thinking. One hand involuntarily hovered over his chest, coming to rest where the "scar" of an old wound lay beneath the armor. He let it sit there for a moment before forcing it away. Even after all these years... Abruptly, Purple got out of the chair, deciding to leave before this dark mood enveloped him for the rest of the day. He seriously needed to learn to relax. Maybe he could take lessons from Red, he thought to himself, grinning again. Let everyone else worry about the little things, he was Almighty Tallest and had far more important things to worry about.   
Such as what they were going to do about Zim. Or, rather, Emperor Zim, as the midget had named himself. By the first Tallest, how were they going to figure this one out? It seemed impossible that he'd actually succeeded in the "secret mission" they'd given him all those years ago. He even still believed that it HAD been a true mission, and Purple couldn't bring himself to let Red spill the truth. Yet, the shortest Irken Invader had managed to do something right for once and then gone and named himself Emperor. That was the whole reason they'd come up with the new rules. They couldn't have random Invaders deciding that they wanted to rule their conquered planets. It was only through a special, and very private, transmission from a certain someone that Zim was able to rule his planet, acting as a sort of go-between for the Tallest and the humans. "Are you gonna come or what?" Red called, sticking his head back in.  
"Yeah, I just got distracted." Purple left the pad where it was; someone would pick it up later. "You getting sodas?"  
The red-eyed Tallest nodded happily. "Yep, want one?"  
They boarded the elevator. "As long as it's caffienated, sure," he laughed. "None of that weird stuff you like drinking though."  
"Hey, what's wrong with it?" Red asked, feigning complete innocence. "It's just-"  
"Thick, chunky and gross," Purple finished, narrowing his eyes. He stuck out his thin tongue at the other Tallest. "Makes me sick."  
Red shrugged. "Not my fault your squeedly-spooch isn't as tough as mine."  
"You killed slaughtering rat people for five years. I read books about killing the slaughtering rat people for five years."  
"My point exactly."  
"Wow, you actually have a point?"  
This was the usual flow of conversation between them. Sometimes serious, then flowing into more pleasant topics followed by cheerful banter and a few playful insults. Red tended to have that effect on other Irkens. Unless he was the one who was upset, you could never stay totally depressed or angry around him. When you were angry, he threatened the guilty party with one of his various lazers or with time in prison-jokingly of course. If you were depressed, the rather inept side of his personality usually surfaced, causing him to do something stupid or show off. The duo had been working together for many years now, and knew the other's facets well, as did everyone who worked for them. Red was the brash, loud Soldier who had hardly a care in the world, other than what was going to happen in the next hour, and Purple was the more or less meek and reclusive Student with too much on his mind.  
"I was thinking maybe I should show you some more moves later," the Soldier said, half to himself. "It's about time that 'big' brain of yours figured out at least how to hold a lazer without shooting yourself in the eye." The crimson eyes focused on violet ones. "You practiced lately?"  
Purple grinned in embarrassment. "Nope," he muttered. "Been too busy dealing with my Class, trying to avoid another Uprising incident."  
"Irk, that was a mess," agreed Red. "Glad we came up with that plan." He chuckled as the elevator signaled that they'd arrived on their private floor. "I can still remember those shorties' faces when we told them the new laws." They stepped off, onto their floor, Red heading left, Purple to the right. "I'll bring you a drink in a few, Pur," the Soldier called. "I got some stuff to do."  
"You're on a roll today, Red," Purple laughed. "First a point to what you're saying and now you have actual things to do!" His voice faded as he entered his own chambers, probably locking the door behind him.  
"Paranoid," Red muttered to himself, ducking into his rooms. They were, for the most part, an exact duplicate of the Student Tallest's. But, red where his was purple and with racks of assorted weapons in place of shelves of real or electronic books. He was tired. The cause of his weariness was unknown. Maybe the work from today's session with Purple had worn his brain out. He honestly wasn't used to writing speeches. "Soldiers aren't good speakers," Red mused, staring at his collection of ancient weapons. His favorites were the long staffs with blades attached to one end. The other branched out into twin prongs with razor-sharp, serrated edges-perfect for ripping an enemy in two. He was an expert in their use and practiced with them in the sparring room every spare moment. Purple had given some name to them in the ancient Irken language, something starting with "ba" or "bec."   
Carefully, he took down the one he treasured the most, enjoying the smoothness of the shaft in his fingers. The main shaft was a deep brown that held almost a reddish tone when the correct light was held to it. Intricate carvings ran up and down its length, probably depicting glorious Irken victories. Its blade and serrations were gilded, reflecting light like a mirror. If they had been pure gold, the value of the weapon would not have been as great. They were, in fact, painted to enhance its elegance and made of one of the stronger metals at the time. Running a careful, Soldier-trained, eye across it, he noted the dull quality of the material. There was polish in his bedroom. Resting the staff across his shoulders, Red carried it off. Polishing was almost as relaxing as the thing he'd intended to do-which was to take a nap. The methodical, rhythmic strokes calmed you in a way nothing else could. He hummed a battle mantra on the way, antennae twitching along with the imagined beat working its way through his head. He marched smartly, instead of hovering, as a Tallest should. No one was around to see him, so why waste the power cells?   
Personally, he was glad they'd brought the Armada back to Irk for a few years to recuperate the fleets. All the Invaders who hadn't conquered their planets yet wouldn't need it for a while anyway, and those who had were either lording over them or had returned to Irk already. It was good to be back. Just because he was a Soldier didn't mean he enjoyed campaigning. Oddly enough, Purple acted like he preferred it more than Red did. That was probably because he had never traveled off Irk as a Student, before he became Tallest.   
Red ducked into his bedroom, looking around for where he kept the polish. It was always in a different place. With utmost care, he laid the staff on the bed, both to get it out of the way and not to damage it. "Oh, there it is!" he said, unsure of why he was talking to himself. The bottle of polish sat on one of the bedside tables, probably from last night's use. He took a step forward and unexpectedly tripped over something lying in his path. The Tallest unceremoniously fell flat on his face, grunting with surprise. A soft giggle startled him further. Red's antennae flicked inwards as he pushed himself up, looking around him. He was alone. "Who's there?" he demanded, fingers going for the lazers hidden in each wrist guard.   
"Tall boomy!" the same quiet, almost babyish voice called out. It giggled again. "Boomy!"   
His antennae twitched, looking for the source of the sound. It was behind him. The giggling continued. "Sounds like a kid," Red murmured to himself, and twisted around. Something ducked back under the bed. "Ah-hah!" he cheered, diving after it. "Come back here you... little thing!" Unfortunately, he wasn't prepared for what his fingers returned with. His eyes widened in astonishment; jaw dropping. "What the...?"  
A baby Irken squirmed in his grasp. A baby, female Irken. About ten inches tall, probably only a day old, and without a back pod. She wore a small scarp of cloth instead of the Hatchery-issue clothing babies were given the moment they "hatched." Each antenna curled delicately away from her face, as did her black eyelashes. Her eyes were green, bright, beautiful green. She had ceased giggling and was trying to loosen Red's firm grip on her tiny body. There was no way she was Soldier-born; no Soldier had green eyes. That also explained her attitude. The two stared each other in the eye for a moment, then she bit his finger. "OW!" Red yelped, switching hands to suck on the injured finger. He glared at her. Then finally made a decision. "PUR!" he yelled, storming out to find the other Tallest. "PURPLE!"  
The Student Tallest jumped. Irk, Red's voice could carry. He'd been sitting in a chair beside his window wall, innocently reading about how one should hold a lazer when he'd heard the Soldier bellowing his name, followed by a stream of obscenities that could only be described as "unprintable." He turned the chair around to face the door, trying to keep his antennae from twitching backwards. Red wouldn't, knowingly anyway, do anything to harm him. Unfortunately, the Student couldn't tell whether the Soldier was in a rational-angry or an insane-angry mood at the moment. He hoped it was the former. Nervously, he fingered the shielding button on his wrist guard. "What on Irk is this!?" was the first thing he heard as Red stormed in, holding a wriggling something aloft. His eyes were dark, holding an angry glint but lacking the crazed luster. "It bit me!"  
"Bring it here and let me see," Purple said smoothly, trying to keep a calm, placating tone to his words.   
Red grudgingly marched forward, holding the thing at arm's length. "Here," he growled, dropping the thing into Purple's lap. The Student let out a yelp of surprise, recoiling while Red snickered at his actions. "Tall," the thing said in awe, looking up at them both with its green eyes. "Tall!"  
"Where did you get her...?" the Student asked softly, staring at the tiny Irken female. He looked her over in shock, letting her grip his long fingers to spin around. "By the First Tallest! She doesn't even have a back pod..." Purple chewed his lower lip, one of his little bad habits created out of nervousness. "How can she be alive?" The little female giggled, refusing to release her hold on him. Purple would have smiled if he hadn't been so unnerved.   
"My guess is either she was a reject who got zapped by mistake and someone wanted to dump her, or..." He shrugged. "I forget the other one. How do you think she got up here in the first place?" Red's anger seemed to have cooled for the most part. He approached the chair to play with the female's tiny antennae.   
"I have no idea. This is supposed to be the maximum security level." Red groaned inwardly. Purple's paranoia about security was going to double if he didn't think up a normal-sounding solution. "Maybe one of the cleaning crew found her somewhere and lost her," he suggested, trying to sound sincere. "I could uh, go check with them if you want, Pur..."  
Purple nodded. "And see if any of the Student Hatcheries on Irk are missing an infant," he added. "And if not, check and see if they're willing to take on an extra."  
Instead of whining, Red just nodded. "Sure thing. You gonna be all right with her for a while?"   
"Yeah, I like little short things hanging off my fingers."  
At least he had his sense of humor back, Red thought to himself, leaving. It was going to take a good portion of the evening, and probably most of the night as well. He didn't care. Soldiers could live without one night of sleep. He chuckled to himself as the door slid closed behind him. "Have fun, Pur."   
The little female refused to let go of his fingers. "Come on," Purple muttered, trying to pry her off. "I'm a busy Tallest! I have stuff to do." She only giggled and squeezed tighter. He had to admit, she was cute. "How on Irk did you get in here?" he wondered aloud. "Did someone want us to find you? Irk knows we're too busy-er, at least usually too busy for someone like you. First Tallest, we don't even have anything that can teach you... or a pod for you. Blast it, let go of my fingers!" He tried shaking her off, but she only let out a squeal of delight.  
"Tall!" she cheered. That seemed to be all she could say. Normally, Student infants were implanted with the knowledge of speech and the basics. Their skills were learned later on in life, which ones they learned depending on the talents they showed in various tests. Obviously, this female hadn't even learned how to speak properly. Why she was even alive was a mystery to him. "Purple," he said, gesturing to himself with a free hand. "Tall-est Purple."  
"Puwple..." she copied. "Purple! Tall-est Purrrrple!" Her grip on his fingers released and she tumbled to the floor, giggling over the new words. "Tall tallest Purple!" the female said, pointing at him.   
"Er... yeah, that's the general idea of being Tallest..." He reached into one of his waistbands, digging around for something. Irk knew how Red managed to keep sandwiches in there. His eye brightened as his fingers closed around the object he'd been searching for. "Here," he said, tossing the little rubber ball to her. Her eyes widened, if that was even possible. She laughed happily, bouncing it on the thick carpeting. Purple left her alone, he had some... Student things to do. Chewing his lip again, he pulled a thick volume from one of the shelves, scanning the title before hovering higher to select another of the same content. Maybe the ancients could give him some ideas for how to handle the situation? He came down to hover only an inch above the floor, deciding to translate the texts in the privacy of his room. Sure, he could have just used an instant electronic translator, but that defeated the purpose of being a scholar. "Hope I haven't forgotten too much..." he muttered, leaving the main room. The books were heavy in his hands. A small tug on the traditional Tallest skirt made him look down, curious. The little female was clinging to the fabric, her green eyes scared. "Oh for the love of..." Purple sighed. "Come on then." Shifting his books to one hand, he let her grab his fingers, pulling her up to give her a ride on his armor-plated shoulder.   
He smiled at her coos of delight at his room. She squeaked, grabbing his face to show him something. "Oh, so you like that thing huh?" he laughed. The object of her attention was a stringed instrument in the corner of his room. It was metal, shaped like an open book with a hollow pedestal at the bottom. The right side had strings running vertically, while the left's ran horizontally. Inside the pedestal were small chimes one tapped with one's foot to produce the rhythm. It was rather difficult to play, but when you mastered it, the music produced was some of the most beautiful on Irk. Purple was good at it, although nowhere near mastering the thing. The ancients called it a ti-aten. He set the books down on his bed and moved over to the ti-aten player's chair. The female slid from his shoulder to his lap, watching in wonder. Very slowly, Purple brushed his foot against the largest of the chimes, producing low, steady notes. His right hand went to work over the vertical strings, left joining after a minute of faulty chords. It was a soft, pleasing song, almost like a lullaby. The female's eyelids began to close. Purple chewed his lip in concentration, fingers gliding over the strings. Normal Irken musicians had six fingers to work with; Tallests had only four. It was difficult. As he continued, the imperfect chords became fewer and fewer, the right ones emerging through, pure and sweet. When he looked down, the female was asleep, one of her fingers in her mouth. He stopped playing, flexing his fingers. Maybe he could read in peace out in the main room now. Judging by the time, there would be some moonlight if at least one of Irk's moons were full.  
Purple picked her up once again, careful not to disturb her. The smaller volume was collected also. Once in the main room, he stretched out on the couch, letting the little female sleep on his chest while he balanced the book on his knees. "Lights," he murmured. "Dim." The voice-activated system responded, giving him enough light to read by, but enough dark to sleep by. He felt relaxed now, the stress of the day dissipating as he became absorbed in the book. The little female sighed, cuddling under his chin. Purple jumped slightly at the gentle touch. He wasn't used to this. /This must be what it's like to have a student to teach,/ he thought, smiling. Almost every member of the Student Class was paired with an Irken child to teach his or her skills to. Purple had been too young to be assigned a student when he'd become Tallest. He couldn't help thinking he'd missed out on something great, something he should have been able to experience. Hesitantly, he brushed one of her delicate antennae with a fingertip. The female sighed blissfully in her sleep. She was so small, so innocent...   
"I think I'll call you Ivy," Purple said quietly. "Can't keep calling you female." He was silent for a while, watching her sleep. "I'm going to take you as my student..." he decided, still playing with her antennae. He was starting to feel sleepy. "And if Red doesn't like it... he can shove it up his green ass..."  
  
"No one's missing any-" Red started, then stopped as he noticed the Irkens on the couch. The other Tallest was asleep, a book open across his knees, his hands splayed over it like he had been reading. The little female had curled up under his chin, also asleep. Red groaned. He should have foreseen this coming. There was an old saying among Soldiers. "Leave a Student with a baby and he'll have adopted it before you can blink," he growled. Once he'd heard that no one was missing a baby or wanted another, he'd made mental plans to launch the reject into an asteroid or dispose of it some other way. But now...   
He approached Purple's couch, leaning over it to watch the Student Tallest. For the first time in a long while, Purple looked peaceful, unconcerned with the world and the troubles that plagued a Tallest. Maybe letting him have this kid as a student would be good for him. Irk knew that if he didn't stop worrying, he'd die long before his time. "Can't have that," he muttered. "I'd be chased with sticks or something."  
Purple's antennae twitched at the familiar voice. His lavender eyes flicked open, bleary with sleep, then clearing before focusing on Red's face. He yawned, stretching out his legs. "Long night?" he asked.  
"No Hatchery is missing anything. And no Nursery or Academy wants to take on another short thing," Red told him. "Sure, they will if we order them to, but then there'd be chaos." The Soldier grinned roguishly. "I see you have a friend."  
The Student's face blushed a dark green. He opened his mouth to explain, but Red cut him off. "I know you wanna keep her, Pur," he said. "And... I guess it'd be all right. I mean, you are a Student and by Irken laws you should get to teach someone something or other." Now it was Red's turn to blush. "I guess she is kinda cute. Looks like she's gonna be tall too. It'd be a shame to waste all that height on books and stuff like that..."  
Purple laughed. "You can train her if you want. I think she'd benefit from being a mix of the two Classes. Maybe she could be a way to keep my Class from killing yours."  
"Hah, not much chance of that." Red reached down and gently twirled one of the female's antennae around his finger. "Named her?"  
"Ivy."  
"Good name." Red grinned at the sleeping Irken child. "She's got a big job ahead of her."  
"And that would be...?" Purple squinted an eye at the other Tallest.  
"Keeping you from driving me insane."  
Ivy purred in her sleep, ignoring the two Almighty Tallest plan the rest of her life.  
  
(Okay, so that was kinda fluffy. I got this idea in biology and it begged to be written. I'm only doing this because I have writer's block. Reviews will help me buy a sledgehammer to destroy the evil block that keeps me from finishing Collateral Damage.) 


	2. Bargains

This is the last chapter of this story I'm doing. I've got too many other projects going. If somebody else loves this fic so much, they can continue it. Email me with the title of this fic in the subject heading if you want it. It's first come first serve so, happy mailing... or not. The only rule I have is non-slash. This isn't slash... Well, if you want it, be my guest.  
I own Ivy. Not Red, not Purple. Not Zim-er, wait, Zim's not in this... never mind. I don't want the creator of JTHM mad at me...   
Hee hee... Massive...  
  
Jade Eyes II  
  
The stars glided by the porthole. They shown into her eyes, their dancing light creating pinpricks of flashes in her sensitive vision. "Ivy-tam," said a voice from behind her. "tal slen iater?"  
She frowned, processing what he'd said. "Yep, I finished my work!" The young female turned to face him. "When's Red coming back?" she asked, pressing her mouth into a babyish pout. "He said he'd show me lazers when he was done..."  
"I don't know," her teacher answered. They were in his quarters, the doors locked to prevent intrusion. Purple gazed down at the dark orange planet twirling idly below the vast spread of the Armada's ships. He chewed his lip. Red had been down there a long time, trying to locate the Invader assigned to this particular planet. The armies were also having trouble with the blistering heat of it. Irk was a great deal colder than this sun-baked rock. Purple had wanted to come, but Red had insisted it was too dangerous for a scholar. "Plus, we need someone to take care of the ship," he'd said. "Not to mention the squirt." As if she'd heard him thinking, Ivy wandered over, wrapping her arms around his legs. He smiled. Had it really been four years? Four years and they STILL couldn't figure out where the little one had come from. There were a few records of stillborns on the day she'd been found. It was likely she'd been one of those who had awakened after being cast aside wherever the Hatcheries put stillborns, and been found by a worker. That still didn't explain why she'd been in Red's room... Purple doubted he'd ever know. He patted Ivy's head absently. She was growing quickly, and was about 2'5 now. After a great deal of searching, they'd finally found a green and white back pod for her. It had been installed while she slept, as the implantation of the wires into a spine hurt. She used the attachments with ease now. She'd been learning from both Tallests at a fantastic rate. From him, she learned how to speak ancient Irken, write in the somewhat difficult style of her race and could read almost as well as the Student Tallest himself. Red hadn't begun to instruct her yet, saying she was too small for all his lazers or other weapons. Ivy had become particularly fond of his favorite, the bati staffs, which pleased the Soldier to no end.   
Ivy climbed up on the couch beside him, wrapping her little arms around his thin waist. "I miss Reddy," she muttered. Her green eyes looked up at him, begging him to bring back the other Tallest. "He's a'posed to show me lazery things."  
"I know," Purple said. He put his arm around her. "Red just has some things to do. Tallest Irken things." Ivy played with the fabric of her dress, putting her fingers into her mouth. She made a face, spitting them out as the sour taste of her glove fabric reached her brain. Like all normal Irkens, she wore boots and gloves; although her main garments consisted of a green, sleeveless dress the Tallest's personal tailors had been obsessed with creating. He laughed at her disgusted face.   
"Why can't he stay on the ship with me like you do?" Ivy questioned, her antennae flicking back.  
Purple sighed. "Because Red is a Soldier and there's a war on that planet down there," he replied, pointing out the porthole. "I'm a Student and you need lessons."  
Ivy made another face. "I don't like lessons," she complained. "They're boring."  
"Oh, they're boring now, are they?" he chuckled. "Yesterday you thought the old talk was pretty. Now it's boring."   
"Yes," she complained, burying her face in the pillows, away from him. "I don't want any more lessons. I want Red!"  
"If you're going to be a brat, Ivy-tam," he said sternly. "I'm going to the bridge and you can stay here by yourself. Without me or Red." Purple got up out of his chair, intending to carry out his promise. By the time he got to the door, he felt her little hands pulling on his skirt. She muttered something about him being bad for leaving her into the fabric. His resolve melted. The female had a phobia of being alone. Someone, be it a robot or an Irken, was with her all the time, keeping her company. The two Tallest had learned how to play this to their advantage when Ivy refused to do as she was told. Purple picked her up, letting her almost strangle him. "I spoil you, do you know that?" he whispered. Ivy giggled as his breath tickled her antennae. Smiling, she reached up to pull on his. Mother of Irk, he DID spoil her too much. It was hard not too.  
Students-high ranking mechanics, scholars, robotisits, scientists and even med workers-were mingling in the hallway. Seeing their Tallest, they grinned, tipping their antennae back in salute. The luxury of being informal was used only when he was around. If they were in the presence of Red, they would have been down on their knees, silent. That was the good thing about having two Tallests of different classes. One class wasn't elevated above the other. Unfortunately, that hadn't been enough during the Uprisings. Another scholar, a female with tan-colored eyes, fell into step beside her Tallest, holding up some forms. "Kasden Aman," she began, using his old student name. Another luxury. "Do you know how long I've been looking for you?"  
"Nope. But I know you're going to tell me, uh..." He looked down at her, trying to remember her name.  
"Tolia Aman," she told him politely. "I was your teacher's-Swar Aman's student after you became Tallest." He nodded, indicating she should continue. "The etchings of those cave writings our scientists decided were made by ancients are here for your analysis."  
Purple nodded absently. "Put them in my room, I'll see to them later."   
But his replacement wasn't about to quit. "Teacher Aman spoke of you often," she said quietly. "She was truly sad about your departure." Tolia noticed Ivy then. "She's cute. Your student?"  
"And Red's trainee," Purple answered. "We're making her a mix of the two Classes." Before the other scholar could say a word, he headed into the elevator for the bridge. "I'll contact you if I need you." The doors closed, blocking out her reply.   
The bridge of the Massive was chaos. Operators ran around, making frantic commands to the leaders of various squads on the planet's surface. KJMT-vect cruisers blasted by the huge windows of the bridge, their weapons geared for battle. Elite Guards dashed up to Purple as he stepped off the elevator, Ivy clinging to him. "What in the name of Irk happened?" he demanded, holding Ivy tighter. She was trembling.  
"Sir..." the head guard saluted, then paused, antennae flicking with indecision. "Sir, the inhabitants of the planet have decided to attack the army-"  
"Old news," Purple growled. "Something happened. What?"  
"We've lost contact with Tallest Red's unit, my Tallest."  
Cold dread swallowed the Student Tallest. "You what...?" he asked dangerously. Ivy squirmed, scared. She couldn't understand exactly what was going on. All she knew was that her teacher was afraid, and that something bad had happened to her instructor. She knew this was what Red had called an invasion. He'd said that there were other racers in the galaxy who weren't as good as Irkens, and that Irkens had to invade those planets to make the racers better. Red had also said that the other racers got hurt cause it was war, but Irkens were safe because they were the best. Now she didn't know what to think.   
The guard was shaking too. Ivy didn't know why. Her teacher didn't hurt anyone... that was her instructor's job. "Tallest Red contacted us five minutes ago," the guard continued, stammering. "It was just a routine transmission. Status report, instructions. The Tallest was about to finish when there were explosions in the background. The others in his unit were screaming about an attack. That was when we lost the signal." He knelt down, showing his unprotected neck in submission while flattening his antennae against his head. "We haven't been able to contact the Tallest since. We feel... we feel we may have a hostage situation, my lord Tallest."  
Ivy wailed. "Find him. Find him now," Purple ordered, trying to keep Ivy calm. Irk, she understood more than the Tallest gave her credit for. He was afraid too. Red was his friend, his closest friend. The brains behind the armed forces of the Invasion. Amazingly, when he needed to be, Red was more than a competent strategist in the art of warfare. If he was dead, Purple honestly didn't know if OID2 would succeed. "Have you locked into where his signal came from?"  
"Yes my lord. We are doing all we can to locate him and his unit."   
"Hurry it up."  
"Yes sir!"  
Purple stalked over to the chairs meant for he and Red only. "Ivy-tam, hush," he soothed through his teeth. "It's going to be okay. Red will come back. He's going to be okay. Purple's going to make everything okay again." She didn't answer, just buried her little face against his neck, hot tears dripping down onto his armor. The operators were working overtime, their fingers flashing in blurred motion over their consoles, each one desperately trying to locate their other leader. Purple chewed his lip until it bled. How could this have happened? Blast Red! He was so stupid! Why hadn't he taken precautions? No, he wouldn't have even if the others in his unit had wanted them. Red had never really cared for protocols anyway. Mother of Irk... what if he was killed? No. Purple refused to think like that. If anyone could find a way to survive on a hostile planet, it was that blasted Soldier. A cool something touched the drops of rose-colored blood trailing from his lip. He looked down to see Ivy staring up at him, her beautiful green eyes wet. "You hurt yourself," she said, now looking at the spot on her gloved fingertip. "Reddy isn't gonna like that. He gets scared when you do that."  
Her babyish bluntness lessened his fear. "I'll be fine, Ivy-tam," Purple said, holding her close and kissing the top of her head. He could feel her small body fight to keep from purring happily at the attention. "It's okay, Ivy. You can be happy. Nobody's making sure you're scared too."  
She didn't purr, just buried her head in his armor. Hours passed with no result. Ivy eventually ceased her trembling, finally falling asleep in his arms. He wished her could fall asleep so easily. His lip grew more and more bloodied as the hours passed, the ship tense with fear. "My Tallest!" one of the operators yelled, breaking the tension on the bridge. His yell woke Ivy, who whimpered, threatening tears again. Purple squeezed her reassuringly. "We have a line opened with the leaders of this planet!" The operator sounded excited. "They want to speak with you."  
"Put them on the screen," the Student Tallest ordered, standing up, hiding Ivy behind him. She didn't make a sound.  
The creatures that appeared on the screen were unlike any Purple had seen before. They looked as if they were made from the same orange dust as the planet itself. There were at least four separate beings, but it was hard to tell-they all kept churning, spinning like dust devils. Eventually, they settled, forming into reptilian things, standing on two feet like Irkens, tails flicking around them. A dark-colored one began. "You be Irken leader, yes," it said, the others nodded at the statement.   
"I am," he answered, trying to convey all the courtesy of his scholarly learning into those two words. "You are the Ineeethi leaders."  
"We are," a second hissed. "You want to invade our planet. You send invader to find weakness. It find none. We find it. We have here." One of the other leaders shifted form into one faintly Irken. An Irken in chains. Purple didn't let his antennae move, or his eyes shift away. "We have other leader." Another one changed into an exact copy of Red, also chained. This time, the Student allowed his eyes to narrow. The differences between the likenesses were obviously a psychological tactic. "Your armies go back. We not kill."  
"Done." Anything to get those Irkens out of there alive...  
The Ineeethi looked at one another, confused. The one who'd mimicked Red's form came forward. "You leave Ineeethir space. We only make slaves."  
What? "No," Purple said curtly. "We leave your space, you give us our people back." His antennae flicked inwards. "All our people."  
They looked at one another, murmuring in their native tongue. "If we give all, we have no way to make sure Irkens leave," a new one growled. "We give back small ones. Tall red-eye stay. He work lots good. You leave, he live."  
Ivy tried to hold back her whimpering. "That isn't going to work," Purple replied in an even tone. He didn't notice his student's little head peer nervously around him. "We want all of our people back here before we leave. If it would help the situation, I will move the main body of the Armada out of your space, but leave a small, weaponless, transport for the other leader and send an escort when the leader is on board."  
For a while, they said nothing. "Who small?" the first one asked. Purple spun to see that Ivy had climbed into Red's chair. Her arms were folded angrily over her little chest, a scowl on her young face. It was no use trying to hide her now. "Small Ivy!" the child announced. "I want Reddy back now!" Purple kicked himself mentally for bringing her along. The bridge had gone silent, tension boiling. What would these Ineeethi do for the child's impertinence? The Tallest turned helplessly back to the screen, hoping Ivy hadn't killed Red and the other hostages.   
To everyone's surprise, the Ineeethi laughed, a low, grating sound that tore their sensitive antennae. "Cute small one," the dark-colored one murmured. The one with Red's form came forward. "You give small one, we give others. Have many uses for small ones," it growled.  
There was a shocked silence. A horrified murmur from Purple caused all eyes to flick to him. They could all see the slumped defeat in his shoulders and the slight backwards tilt of the Tallest's antennae. The meaning of the sentence had been lost on Ivy. She still stood as if she were in complete control of the situation, poised, elegant and very much like the two who were attempting to raise her. Suddenly, Purple's antennae pricked. "You may take her," he said quietly, trying to keep the defeat in his voice. "Unfortunately, our transports are all on your planet. You will have to bring them here-with our people-in order to collect the small one."  
"Leader purple-eye meet us alone," the Invader-formed one said finally. "No guards. No one except the small one. In docking bay. One hour."  
"Of course," Purple agreed, nodding. "One hour, the docking bay will be open for you." The screen went blank. He turned to the operators, who stared at him, stunned. "Stop gawking!" he snapped. "Call the troops back! I want everyone who isn't being held captive back on their ships as soon as possible! All those transports need to be cloaked. Bring Tallest Red's spare wrist guards to bay 45B. Get a move on!" He offered his arms to Ivy. "C'mon, Ivy-tam," he said soothingly. "We need to visit the docking bay to get Red back." She squealed, jumping into his arms.   
The two of them left the bridge, Purple moving as slowly as possible through the corridors and elevators down to the docking level of the huge ship. As she purred happily, resting her head on his shoulder, breath warming his neck, he felt like he was betraying her. Lying to this trusting little baby who loved both him and Red unconditionally. "I'm not," he muttered to himself, watching the doors to docking bay 45B slide easily open at his touch on the control panel. "I'm not, I'm not. By the First Tallest, I swear I'm not." The operators saluted him, one stepping forward to hand him the black and white pieces of armor. Purple set Ivy down, quickly removing his own and latching Red's into place. They were heavier than his were, more bulky because of what was concealed within. "Get out," he ordered the operators. They fled. "Ivy-tam," Purple called, setting his wrist guards on the console. She looked up at him with adoring eyes. "Do you remember how to make your legs into a shield for yourself?" he asked. One long finger tapped her back pod to indicate which legs he meant.  
She concentrated briefly. The slender legs emerged, joining in pairs, which formed a clear, impenetrable bubble around her. "Yep!" Her smile dazzled him.   
"Good girl," Purple patted the bubble fondly. His joy faded as a large transport inched its way towards the docking bay. He cursed softly, lest Ivy pick up the habit. "Here's what you have to do," he began, eyes never leaving the Irken transport. "Stay behind me until I say so. And when I tell you to, come out with your bubble on. There is going to be some shooting, but you'll be safe if you stay beside me or behind me. Red might be hurt, or worse, but you can't act afraid or Red will go away." He looked right into her eyes. "Do you understand, Ivy?"  
"Yes," she murmured, latching onto his legs. "I'll be brave like you two!"  
They watched the transport slowly slide into the bay, engines scorching the stale air in the protected monitoring room where they were. The inner doors locked behind the ship, sealing the docking bay from the vacuum of space. Purple headed to the doors, dragging Ivy behind. She was trying not to whimper. They stood before the transport, a DWT-Vast runner, its bulk dominating even the Tallest. The craft had weapons, as did all Irken ships, but they were weak and poorly suited to destroying anything of substance. Red hated the weak lazers. Both Irkens tensed, as two Ineeethi leaders waltzed out, shifting forms at will. Behind them, an entire squad of Soldiers marched, chained with metal-not beams of energy like Irkens used. They looked beaten. Purple frowned. The Invader was among their ranks, but the Tallest was nowhere to be seen. "Here. They all here," the dark-colored Ineeethi growled. "Give small one."  
"No. Where is the tall Irken?" Purple retorted, fingering the heavy wrist guards. The squad moved to surround him, noting their release. "We agreed he would be returned."   
There was an annoyed muttering between the two Ineeethi. They called something to their comrades still in the ship, their tones annoyed. After a series of grunts only audible to Irken hearing, accompanied by loud and long curses, the other Ineeethi dragged Red from the transport. Like the others, he was chained. His armor was battered, dented and horribly scarred from lazer fire. The hover belt had been torn from the bottom of his Tallest skirt, leaving it ragged and stained with dust from the planet. His boots were gone. There were bruises and various cuts on his face. Despite his appearance, the angry glint in his Soldier-red eyes still shone with a vengeful fire. He cursed again as they threw him at Purple's feet. At least he wasn't dead... "There," one snapped, glaring down at the Soldier Tallest. "Your trash has been returned."  
" 'Trash'!?" Red quoted, shouting. "You sorry wormbag!" He twisted his head around to face what had been his captors. "I'll destroy all of you!" The Soldier's frustration increased when they laughed at his position. Curses streamed out of his mouth.   
  
The Ineeethi ignored his display. "Now, give small one," the dark one said, extending its hand as if to take a leash. "We have brought tall, stupid one and small ones. Now you give small green-eyed one." When Purple didn't move, it got impatient. "Give her now!"  
The significance of the statement finally clicked in Red's brain. "What!?" he demanded, twisting his head to see Purple. "No! Purple you idiot! Don't!" He sat up, giving the Student a death glare. "You miserable wormstink! How could you give Ivy up!?"  
"Shut up," Purple told him flatly, flicking his antennae in irritation. "Come here, Ivy," he said softly. The little Irken walked timidly forward, trying to keep herself from throwing her arms around Red. Her teacher had said what she had to do, and she did it, unquestioning. The bubble was safely around her, not even shimmering in the light orbs of the docking bay. Purple reached down to pull Red to his feet. The other Tallest leaned heavily to one side, still glaring at him. "Stop it," Purple hissed, barely loud enough for even the Soldier to hear. "She isn't going anywhere." He eyed the chains. "Can you shoot your lazers with those on?"  
The glare vanished, then was replaced with a false one. "Anytime, smokescreen-boy," Red grinned, showing his teeth. "They can be killed. You just gotta aim right."   
One Ineeethi came forward, its arm outstretched to grab Ivy. She cringed away. "Come small one," it laughed. "We have much use for small one. Many lonely Ineeethi." The hand came again, this time less gentle and more demanding. She wailed. The Ineeethi suddenly found itself staring a lazer blaster in the face. "If you scum dare put your hands on Ivy," Purple hissed, keeping the blaster aimed at its head. "You will be blasted into pieces so small, dust you know are will look like mountains." The other wrist guard came up, aiming at another Ineeethi who had taken a step towards Ivy. Red took this as his cue, aiming his as well. With another wail, Ivy ran back to hide behind the Tallest. The Invader moved to block her from the Ineeethi, which earned him a grateful glance from both Tallest. "If any of you move," Purple continued, antennae flicking inwards with his aggression. "we will kill you."  
"You made deal!" the head Ineeethi snarled. "We bring red idiot, you give small ivy! Irkens uphold deal with Ineeethi!" It changed form, dust twisting into some strange creature, bristling with horns and fangs. Neither Tallest moved. The Ineeethi took a step forward. Purple fired. He wondered if a lazer could harm something made entirely of dust. He didn't have long to wait. The Ineeethi he'd shot disintegrated into a pile of harmless orange grit, a strangled cry escaping it. The others stared in horror. Red grinned at them, whispering, "Payback," to himself, then fired. Both Ineeethi he'd been aiming for fell. The remaining creature fled inside the ship, Purple's fire going wide. Angered, Purple chased after it, not listening to Red's shouts. Before he could board the ship after it, the Ineeethi emerged, cradling a blaster. "Oh... mother of Irk," Purple muttered in disbelief. It raised the weapon. A smirk crept onto its face at the Tallest's frozen stance. It slowly pulled the trigger-  
And disintegrated.  
Red let out a whoop of triumph. Purple couldn't move. He felt someone pound his back pod in celebration, another someone tugging on his skirt, and was conscious of the sound of Irken cheering. In a daze, he allowed himself to be pulled from the docking bay to his rooms... where he passed out from shock.   
  
Ivy was happy now. Reddy had come back, and Pur was alive. At first, she'd thought he'd been hurt. The doctor Irkens had said that he'd been very scared and that had made something bad happen inside him and that made him fall asleep. Ivy wasn't sure if she believed them. They had said a lot of big words that had confused even Reddy. Then, the doctors had explained it again, using smaller words both of them understood. She decided they were wrong. Pur just needed sleepies cause everyone said he worried lots about everything. That she could believe. With a sigh, Ivy relaxed further against Red's armor. He'd been gone in the doctor level place for a while and had to leave her alone with some other Irken. She didn't like other Irkens. They talked funny. "Too many big words," she murmured.  
"Hmmm?" the Tallest asked, lifting her chin up to look at him. "Say something, Vee?"  
Reddy called her "Vee," that was his name for her. Pur called her "Ivy-tam," cause that was the old way of giving nicknames to Irkens. She liked both names. "I said that doctors talk with too many big words," she explained, slightly louder this time. She had to be quiet cause Pur was sleeping and they were waiting for him to wake up in his room to surprise him. Ivy liked surprises. She hoped Pur liked them too. He needed a break. Even while he was sleeping, he looked worried. She purred; enjoying the attention Red was lavishing on her. "I missed you, Veevee," Red said, twirling her antennae around his fingers. Veevee was another name he had for her. "Too many Soldiers hurting the enemy. Not enough cute little Soldier/Students to play with."  
"You never showed me lazers," Ivy told him, pouting. "I like da big ones."  
"I know you do Vee," he murmured, smiling down at her. He got serious suddenly. "Pur had to do a very dangerous thing with you today. We're lucky he's smart, otherwise the bad race would get you." His voice suddenly got very quiet, like he was scared. Ivy didn't like it when Red was scared. He was the big, tough one who could make all the bad things go away and keep her safe from the monsters who came when she was alone. She hugged him around his waist. Red returned the gesture. "We're lucky, Ivy. Very, very lucky," he said.  
"Did you blow the planet up?" Purple asked suddenly, groggily sitting up. He massaged his forehead. Ivy frowned. Pur was worrying too much again.   
"Yep." Red swiveled the chair around to face the other Tallest, grinning again. "Nobody tries to kill my squad, me and take away Ivy. If they do," he pretended to fire a blaster. "BOOM! They're space garbage."  
This caused Purple to laugh. It sounded real for once and made Ivy smile. "I'm sorry," he said, calming. "Both of you, I'm sorry. I wouldn't have done it if I didn't have a plan."  
Red waved him off. "Hey, as long as the Almighty Student has a plan, I'm fine," he joked. Both of them looked at Ivy. She giggled. They looked serious. "I'm okay!" she told them. "The racers went into dust!"  
" 'Racers'?" Purple asked, staring at her. "Wha...?"  
"It's a long story," Red said, blushing a dark green.   
"I'm not going anywhere."  
"That's a first."  
With a purr of contentment, Ivy snuggled back down into Red. It felt safe now, both her teacher and her protector were okay, so she would be okay too. She knew it would be. She hoped it would always be okay. Ivy smiled a secretive smile. Life got too complicated for a young female who's attention was fought over by the Almighty Tallest. 


	3. Snow

I blew the dust off this sucker and decided to continue it! Thanks to all the people who reviewed and like this so much! You convinced me!! ^.^ R&R!  
  
  
  
Episode III: Snow  
  
"Weee! This is fun!"  
"Ivy! This isn't funny! OW!"  
"She got you, Pur."  
"I know that!"  
"OW!"  
"Hehe! I got you too, Red!"  
The Soldier grumpily brushed the white powder the reports labeled, "snow" from his back. Irk, it was cold on this planet! From space, the miserable rock looked nothing more than a ball of white spotted with black patches that could have been frozen liquid seas. Fortunately, the stuff was deemed harmless to Irkens, unlike its similarity to an Earth liquid that burned their skin like acid. On the other hand, this stuff clung to everything and melted into damp pools, which refroze into sheets and had to be shattered by hammers. It was bad enough being here, but the fact that there wasn't anything to make it valuable to the Empire made it worse. The Invader had nearly frozen to death on this "easy" mission. Now, the thoroughly thawed Irken Invader stood before them, beckoning them into the meeting building. Irkens were efficient. Immediately after the transports and voot cruisers had settled down, a miniature city had sprung up, complete with heat and barracks, as well as laboratories for the students. A few other bases of operation had sprung up within a hundred mile radius of the main one as well.   
"Reeeeed!!" Ivy called, jumping up to nearly tackle the Tallest from behind. "Come and play!"   
He sighed, prying her hands off him. As much as he'd love chasing her around in the cold whiteness, there was a great deal of work to attend to... "I'm sorry, Vee," Red said apologetically. "But I have work to do. And so does Purple. You can stay out here as long as you don't get too cold. We'll play as soon as we're done..." He added the last part after seeing the look on her face. At eight, she was still a child, a very young child by Irken standards. "I promise."  
Her young face screwed up in a frown. "All right..." the female mumbled, kicking her boot in the snow. A sudden smile replaced her displeasure. "Red?"  
"Hmm?" he turned from heading into the single-level meeting building Purple had ducked into a few moments earlier.   
"Throw this for me, 'kay?" She placed a tightly-packed, freezing ball of snow in his hand. At his slightly confused look, Ivy giggled, then explained. "Pur doesn't get enough fun when we land on planets! He needs to laugh more."  
Red had a loud laugh at that. How true! Gently, he patted Ivy on her head and strode into the building. The moment he entered, Red's good mood melted like the snow from his armor. It was always tense at these meetings, someone's temper liable to erupt and cause havoc, a Soldier-Student brawl, anything to disrupt the proceedings and keep him trapped longer. Fingering the ball of snow, he scanned the room for the other Tallest. He shouldn't have bothered. Purple was, as always, seated in his chair at the head of the large table, thin fingers typing away on a device of some sort. Already, his teeth were busily sawing away at his lower lip. That was one habit nothing could make him break. Casually, Red made his way over, whistling to himself. The aids dove out of his path, bowing in a hurried manner that made his mood lighten once again. Students were great little Irkens! Nervous, eager to obey him or give information in case he forgot-which was often-or were always... there. Whenever you needed one, they just seemed to pop up wherever you were.   
Seating himself beside the other Tallest, Red waited for the perfect moment to strike. "Whatcha doing?" he asked, peering at the holoscreen where Irken letters popped up in unison with the tap of keys under Purple's fingers. "Notes, report to yourself...? What?"  
The stern face swiveled to face him. "Yes, note-" the sentence was cut off by the padded squelch of the snow against Purple's face.   
His co-Tallest's expression was more hysterical than Red would have thought. He threw his head back, laughter erupting in a loud explosion that caused all heads to turn to him. Slight smiles crossed otherwise harried faces at their Tallest's mirth. That was, Red had long ago decided, one of his better abilities. That and scare the goo out of anyone. And beat anything to a bloody pulp. "Sorry," he chuckled, calming down. He avoided Purple's gaze, knowing if he looked, he'd laugh again. "Ivy made me do it."  
"I see." After a brief pause, the tap of keys began once more. "As I was saying, before I found my eyeballs frozen, I'm summarizing Invader Mook's report to brief your generals with." There was a heavy sigh. Red dared a look over at the other Tallest's, now snow-less, face. Purple was hunched over the holoscreen, his head against both wristguards, fingers drumming his forehead. He sighed again, glaring at the screen. "Did you know there is NO life on this planet other than those giant furry things you tried to shoot?"  
He'd forgotten about those furry things... "Remind me why I couldn't shoot 'em," Red said, tapping one finger against his chin. "It wasn't like shooting a few with lazers would do any harm."  
Purple only narrowed his eyes at him. The Soldier really disliked that look, it was one of Purple's "I'm superior" looks. He had a lot of them, each one merely serving to make Red angry. His antennae flicked and Purple's look vanished. "Only if you remind me why we're here in the first place," the Student mumbled, folding his arms over his chest and leaning back in his chair to glower at the screen.   
Red sniggered. "And deprive Mook of the honor of explaining to his Tallest?"  
"I hate you."  
"You don't think I know that?"  
"Shut up."  
"You shut up. You started it."  
"No I didn't!"  
"Yes you did!" Red had to fight to keep from laughing. Getting into so juvenile an argument was hysterical to the others in the room, not to mention a wonderful source of entertainment for himself. As a few, desperately covered snickers were detected by Purple, his normally serene face flushed brilliantly. He slumped in his seat, glaring out at the world. Red narrowed his eyes this time. "Mother of Irk, lighten up Purple..." he muttered, calm now. It didn't matter anyway. The meeting had begun.   
Mook, a thin, wasted-looking Invader came forward, leaning on the table as if it were the only thing holding him upright. He spoke in a high, reedy voice that told of his trying stay on this ice-world. "Tallest and fellow Soldiers," Mook began. "You are all most likely wondering why this planet is of value to the Empire." A star chart appeared over the table, lights dimming as the three-dimensional spheres of planets and pinpricks of stars materialized. The cold planet was highlighted in green, the other planets in the sector under Irken rule glowed red. "As you can see," continued the Invader. "this planet is on the very edge of this sector, making it a sort of outpost for military defense purposes."  
"So, the only thing this place offers to us is higher defense?" asked one of the high-ranking Students chosen to represent their class. "There are no other reasons why this place is worth the Armada's time and energy?"  
The star chart abruptly switched to a map of the planet. "There are other reasons," Mook said smoothly. Black highlighted sections around mountains and oceans. "Here, there are valuable minerals that are of use to us as fuel or for reinforcing metals. It is dense and powerful. My data on it is already stored in the file on this planet. Also..." The highlights shifted to the equator. "Around this planet's equator, the weather is actually warm. And is livable. This planet is large, and therefore suited for colonies."  
There was a murmur among those gathered. Colonization was always a welcome aspect of invaded planets. Irk was far too crowded, and with the high levels of medical technology and long lifespans, the Irken population wasn't decreasing fast enough to keep up with the number of births.   
"Eh, what would be so hard about claiming this place now?" a General asked, his medals gleaming in the artificial light. "Are there any lifeforms we need to worry about?"  
Red finally spoke up. "Aside from the big furry things?" He shot a smirk at Purple, who just glared at him with dark eyes. Okay, Red thought. I give up. Purple just wasn't in a good mood today.   
His question did give him a good laugh from Mook. It was a slightly wheezy sound that grated on the hearing. "My Tallest," Mook said with a small bow. "While those creatures are one of the dominant species here, they have little intelligence to worry about. The most intelligent creatures on this planet are too small to affect us, and live mainly in the deep forests. My research tells me there are larger beasts who scavenge off them for food and the like, but, again, their intelligence is their undoing."  
There were nods around the table. Purple drummed his fingers against his keyboard, obviously wanting to say something, but biting his tongue. Crimson eyes rolled. "This place is worth our time," the Student Tallest finally said, catching the look he'd been sent. His antennae flicked at Red. "Do you recommend an organic sweep, Invader?"  
"No sir, I do not," Mook replied calmly.   
"And why is that?" Purple continued. He and Red would have the final say in the end, but he had always enjoyed hearing the Invader's point of view. For Red, it was an annoyance. The Soldier sat back, folding his arms and looking around for anything else to occupy his attention.  
Mook took a breath, gathering his thoughts. His explanation was ignored by Red, who had pulled out a small pad and pen and begun to doodle. He'd never been very good at it, but it was far better than listening to Purple and a bunch of other Irkens drone on about things that didn't concern him. Even discussing military tactics with this dull group put him to sleep half of the time. He wished he'd remembered to bring some paperclips he could break and flick at whoever wasn't paying attention to him. Doodling soon bored him and he found himself digging through his waistbands, trying to find anything else to keep him occupied during this meeting. He must have been a bit noisy in doing so, because he was suddenly the object of everyone's gaze-not all of which were friendly. Sheepishly, he pretended to turn his attention back to what Mook was saying, and ignore the evil look emanating from violet eyes. A few Soldiers glared too, while some Students snickered, trying to cover it in the fabric of their gloves. Purple took command, snapping at them to be silent, and the meeting commenced once more.   
Bored again, Red finally found what he was looking for. A single, silver strip coiled in a sort of oval, biting down hard on a stack of papers that were placed conspicuously before the one Student in the room who happened to be in the worst mood in a long while. The paperclip found itself under the fierce gaze of two, half-lidded crimson eyes. Making sure Purple was sufficiently distracted by Mook's ramblings, Red slowly slid the stack towards him, his eyes, now fixated on Purple, alert. He knew the others in the room saw him. Not a problem. They looked almost as bored as him. Once the stack was in range, his quick fingers made the paperclip release its hold and fall neatly into an open palm. Now, he slid the papers back, still attentive in case Purple happened to snap out of this interested-or maybe, ill-tempered-mood of his. He didn't. Red grinned devilishly. His task accomplished, he settled back to break the small clip into throw-able pieces.  
"So, we meet again. Eh, my nemesis?" Red muttered to his metal prey, still grinning. "Not so scary now. No paper to protect you!" The first part was twisted and snapped in two. He could almost hear the clip's shrieks of agony as he worked. "Mawhah! So weak now... I'm gonna win this one..." Another part snapped off. Red worked fast, he always had. "And now... for the last part..." he hissed, his look getting even more malicious. The very last joint snapped. Unfortunately, in his haste to destroy the paperclip, he'd forgotten to keep a tight hold on the breaking end. It flew up, heading straight for Purple's eye.  
Red could only stare in horror.  
Feeling the impact in the tender spot, Purple screeched, jumping to his feet. It wasn't a powerful one, like any other Irken would have given, but a high-pitched, childish screech. The Soldiers stared with a sort of horror and a touch of amusement. Chagrined, Purple held the injury, glaring all around at the laughter he imagined the opposite class was hiding. His face turned a very dark green, screwing up in a look of hatred and anger Red had only imagined himself of being capable of. That look was flung directly at the Soldier Tallest, the only Soldier in the room, in Purple's mind, who was not hiding his mirth, as its owner spun to face him. "How dare you!?" he shouted, eyes blazing violet fire.   
"Pur! I'm sorry! It was an acci-"  
The other Tallest cut him off. "You've been annoying everyone and everything all day!" he hissed. Seething, Purple loomed over the sitting Red, hands clenched into fists. "Getting into EVERYTHING! Being BORED every second! I don't know why I even asked you to come!! I KNEW you'd do something like this, RED! It's just like you!" The Irkens in the room stared in shock. Such an outburst was uncharacteristic of the Student Tallest.   
"I'm sorry!" Red finally retorted, getting to his feet. The Tallest were inches away now, hissing. Both pairs of antennae were flicked inward, standing upright. "I'm sorry if all this pointless babble bores me to death! I'm SORRY I was trying to have a little fun and make this meeting a bit more LIVELY than any meeting you've ever done on your own!"  
"Oh, now this is MY FAULT?" Purple snapped back. Not even the enraged Red fazed him at this moment. The others in the room had backed out, leaving the Tallest to "get over their differences," as the term was. "You can't just twist everything around to make it MY fault when you've done something wrong!"  
"But it IS YOUR FAULT!"   
"How is this MY FAULT?"  
Red paced, hissing softly to himself, every inch of him tensed with a bizarre fuming grace. Every so often, he snarled, flashing his teeth at Purple threateningly. His anger only increased when his look was mirrored. "It's your fault," he hissed. "because of your Class."  
The Student tensed with rage. "Red, do NOT bring Class into THIS!" Purple snarled. "This is NOT about CLASS! This is about YOUR idiocy! Your five second attention span! Not CLASS!" His face had changed from dark green to white with anger.  
"Now he calls it idiocy! Well, let me ask you something! Who was the one who YOU, O mightiest of STUDENTS came to ask about how to conquer a planet?! Hmmm?? WHO!? Not one of your weak little friends! ME! The idiot with the five second attention span!"   
Purple bit back a retort. He knew he'd only say something that wouldn't help him. Instead, he paced too. "This is EXACTLY why I think we never should have kept Ivy!" he barked unexpectedly.  
Now it was Red's turn to be indignant. "Don't bring her into this Purple! Don't you DARE!"  
"Too late! I have!" Purple whirled to face Red, slamming his hands down against the table. "We NEVER should have exposed her to you! You and your incompetence is the reason I can't get her to listen to my teaching or me! We should have shot her into space like you wanted! Mother of Irk! Death would be better for her than listening to your Soldier babble about weapons and lopping heads off!" The ending sentence was enhanced when his hands slammed back against the tabletop.   
A soft cry of horror stopped Red from replying. Both heads swiveled to the door, which was open and flapping in the sudden wind. Stunned into silence, the two hurried to find out who exactly had been listening in on their argument. All they could see were the stunned faces of their aids. "What happened?" Red barked to the general crowd.  
From the crowd stepped a particularly bold member of the Student class. Red remembered Purple mentioning her name once or twice. Tolia. Tolia Aman. The Student Purple's "teacher" had taken in after he'd become Tallest. Her tan eyes were dark. "The small one ran once she heard your shouting, sirs," she told him simply, tilting her chin upwards, looking quite dignified. "She was in tears, I am afraid."  
Crimson eyes flicked to violet ones, aghast that Ivy had overheard. Before any other conscious thought had time to register in astounded minds, the two were off, running in the direction which the lower Irkens had sent them. For hours, they scoured the camp and everything within as far a radius as they assumed Ivy could get. For hours, they came up with nothing. Not even a trace. Snow had begun to fall, covering everyone and everything. Darkness and the amount of snow finally forced the Elite Guard to drag the Tallest indoors, steeling themselves to ignore the threats and curses of their superiors.   
  
A scuffling in the dark snapped Purple to attention. He'd been sitting up in bed, staring hopelessly at a small holograph of Ivy. She was standing on Red and his shoulders, waving as if she were the Tallest and they her advisors. Outside, snow covered everything in a fresh foot. Now there was no way of ever finding his little student again... and it was his fault... all his fault for yelling and letting her hear. None of those words... mother of Irk, he hadn't meant any of those things. Just lost his temper and shouted the only coherent thing he could grasp. Remembering the exact wordings made the Tallest wince. He wanted to lie down and die of shame.   
"Purple!" The scuffling sound came again, followed by the hiss of his door sliding open. Light spilled in, sending a shadow over the floor and outlining a familiar silhouette, eyes shining red. It ducked into the room, closing the door behind it. "Why is it so dark in here? By the first Tallest!" Red's face appeared beneath the single light Purple had turned on. There were unusual dark circles beneath the crimson eyes. "What are you trying to do? Disappear?"  
The Student managed a weak smile. "A little," he sighed. "What are you doing here Red? I want to be alone."  
"Come on!" Purple found himself hauled roughly to his feet by a powerful arm. "We're going to go find your Student."   
"What!?" he cried, pulling away from Red's grasp. The Soldier stared firmly at him, one eye half-lidded. "Red..." Mother of Irk... how was he supposed to say something like this? He didn't even want to believe it himself... "Red," he tried again. "Red, it's night... it snowed... they didn't find her in daylight..." Purple put his head in his hands, hiding what he knew would be tears. You didn't let Red see weakness. Even if you had known him for as long as Purple had. How long had it been now? He couldn't remember. "Red, Ivy's... even if she stayed alive through the snowstorm... Ivy's dead... she couldn't survive this cold..." There. He'd said it. Now he had to accept it. His Ivy-tam, with her green eyes and aggressive moods. How tall would she have been? How smart, graceful? Would have been more like him, more like Red...?   
An angry glare from tired, swollen, crimson eyes broke off his misery. Red shook him hard. "No! She's not! Purple... mother of Irk, she's not dead!" There was a panic, an urgency, in the Soldier's voice that was frightening. "She's not dead and we're going to find her and bring her back!"  
"Are you insane!?" he cried, pulling back from Red. "She's probably frozen to death by now! If the snowstorm didn't kill her, this cold has!" He tried to turn his tone rational, in hopes that would calm whatever mind Red had. "Please Red... this is... suicidal!"  
He was stunned to see a flicker of some unusual emotion in those glaring eyes. Sorrow...? "Can we at least find her body so we can give her an Irken burial?" asked the once-terrifying Tallest. His aggressive, almost bloodlust, was gone, replaced by a somber, almost depressed air, which was so different from his usual attitude that it was as if a completely different Irken resided now in his skin. "For the love of the mother of Irk, Purple... can we at least do that for her?"  
"Ye-yes, of course..." Purple stammered, scared more by the other Tallest's sudden emotional swing than anything. Soldiers... just didn't HAVE emotions. They just didn't. That was the way things had always been. But, Red... why all of the sudden did he care so much about the little student? "Right now?"  
Red's antennae pricked up. Already, the idea that he was going to go find Ivy had altered him back to his original, nearly-hyperactive self. "Duh, right now!" he exclaimed, planting his hands on his hips. "I've got everything we need. Lights, personal heating units, food, weapons, paperclips-"  
"Why do we need paperclips?"  
"In case I get bored. Plus, I managed to get Mook's maps of this place. That'll help. We have enough stuff for weeks. Oh, and there's communication devices and extra power cells. I grabbed a med kit too, in case things get really bad. Like if you fell off a cliff or something..." He trailed off, seeing the look on the other Tallest's face. "What's wrong?"  
"This. Is. Insane!" Purple finally shouted. "We can't do this! She could be anywhere! What hope do we have of finding her?"  
"A big one," Red answered calmly. "You have to know of some mechanical thingy that locks onto Irken... stuff and can track her!"  
The statement brought a smile to Purple's face. "Yeah, I have something. Let me find it..." Turning to his desk, already decorated in its usual dusting of various papers, the small device was plucked from an inconspicuous drawer. "Here." It dropped into Red's open hand. "Keep it safe. I only have one."  
After a brief examination, it was handed back to him. "I don't know how to work it," was Red's flat reply. "You hang onto it. After all, you're coming with me on this."  
"I guess I am..."  
  
It was so cold... Her breath came in large white clouds hidden by the whiteness of the snow around her. Rubbing her gloved hands over her arms was the only way to keep them warm. Unlike the rest of the Irkens she knew, save the Tallest, her arms were bare, making them vulnerable to the frigid air. Tears were frozen to her face. Her sobs were long gone by now.  
Why hadn't she intervened earlier? She'd known Pur had been tense about something for a long time. She could sense odd things like that in other Irkens. Odd things like what they were thinking, how they were feeling, and other little things of that nature. Nobody knew about it, and she had only become aware of this talent recently. Most of the time, she despised this ability, as seeing others' thoughts often yielded unwelcome images. She should have told Reddy... she should have told him to watch himself... she should have known they had never wanted her... How could she have ever thought two Irkens as powerful as they would ever want someone who had no knowledge of even what Hatchery she was from? They both had lineage. She was... Mother of Irk, she didn't know if she was just a Student or a Soldier with defunct eyes!   
Ivy sank down into a sitting position in the snow. Cold... She couldn't get warm. But, what did that matter? No one cared about her anyway. No one even wanted her around them. They all wanted her to die... Even Reddy and Pur wanted her to die... The tears came back in full force. Hugging her knees to her chest, Ivy cried harder, letting the tears freeze to her soft green dress. It wasn't her fault she didn't know anything about herself. It wasn't her fault! Why'd they have to blame it all on her? Why?   
It began to snow.   
Startled, the little Irken looked up at the sky, her antennae flicking in both disbelief and surprise. The air around her had grown colder while she'd sat, sobbing her green eyes out. Frightened, Ivy got to her feet, looking around for someplace to hide from the bizarre falling snow. Around her was what may have been an open field, had a thick covering of snow not hidden the grass from view. Far off to the west she could make out a large dark blob that swayed in a slight breeze. Wild plant life. Ivy had seen it before on other planets. Deciding the snow wouldn't be able to get her there, she marched towards it, and veering left of the originally straight course she'd been taking. Behind her, the snow filled her tracks at an alarming rate. She didn't care. She wasn't going back to the base anyway. Not now, and not ever. There was no point in staying in a place where no one wanted or cared about you.   
For hours, she stumbled proudly through the thick white powder, pretending she didn't feel the cold. Ivy only paused to rub the icy tears off her green cheeks. It was exhausting work to plow through the fallen and falling snow. More times than she cared to, Ivy found herself lying still, gasping to get her breath and strength back, fighting off the suddenly overwhelming urge to curl into a ball and sleep. At these times, an anger from somewhere distant would spark up, giving Ivy the mental strength to haul her little body back up and coerce it into plodding along once more. The sky began to darken, snow falling faster with the minutes that ticked by. She started to wonder if she would ever reach the green destination she was heading for. Now it seemed unlikely.  
Finally, on her last ounce of will, Ivy dragged herself into the cover of a small grove of trees. The snow still fell through them in places, but their leaf-like needles refused much of it access to the ground below them. It was almost warmer under their shelter. Feeling the nearly snow-free earth under her gloved hands, the little female summed up just enough strength to crawl beneath a large bush, curling into a ball. Her antennae felt stiff. Glancing at her arms, she was surprised to see a blue tone to the bare appendages. Ivy had never seen such a thing in her life. She was scared, cold, hungry, exhausted, and emotionally shattered. Burying her face in her numb arms, Ivy sobbed with fresh tears. It was awful, knowing that everything she'd known and loved had been one gigantic charade. They hadn't ever loved her. They hadn't cared when she was frightened, crying, or even sick. They had only been faking it.  
That hurt. That hurt her more than the stinging cold did. They had hated her, and Ivy had naively loved them. Loved them unconditionally. But now... she was so very alone on this frozen world, and no one cared to even come looking for her.   
Ivy shut her eyes tightly, feeling that sleepy feeling come over her again. It was so cold... In moments, she'd fallen into a dangerous sleep, the vapor from her breath invisible to those who were not looking for it.  
By the time Ivy was actually found by someone, her damp clothing had frozen to her little body, her breath was faint and her pulse almost nonexistent. Afraid for her life, the rescuers lifted what, to them, was a tall creature, taking her down into the hole from which they'd come. "What is that?" one asked, meeting its fellows at the entrance to what looked like a large cave.  
"Big. Green. Not from here," the rescue party's leader replied.  
"From sky," piped up another, who was hit over the head for its impertinence.  
"He cold," the leader said, gesturing to the half-frozen Irken the party had dragged down the tunnel. "Fell sleep. Dead, methink."  
The one who had asked the first question moved to examine the Irken female, frowning. "SHE is not dead. Frozen, yes. Dead, no. Bring her to the main fire," it ordered, still going over the unconscious body. "These green ones have not harmed us yet. It is the least we can do to care for this one in return for their peace."  
  
By the Mother of Irk, it was cold.   
Their disappearance had gone unnoticed by the patrols and even their personal guard, making their escape simple. Hours later, the Tallests marched in a direct line from camp, following Purple's Irken DNA scanner and bowing their heads against the cold.  
Blasted cold. How many times had that thought popped into his head? Too many for Red's liking. And dark. It was dark too. Even with the four hoverlamps surrounding them, it was difficult to see much. Purple's back was directly in front of him, the purple parts of his back pod black in the darkness, while the rest glowed white. There was a single moon on this planet, a phenomenon somewhat disturbing to Irken eyes. The moon didn't do a great job of lighting the place. Despite it being out, the blackness around them swelled to envelop almost everything. Did he mention how much he disliked the dark?  
Apparently, he had, for Purple was annoyed with him. "It was your idea to sneak out in the dead of an alien night," the Student snapped, pulling one of the bright orbs closer to him. His head was hunched over the small screen he carried. "So don't complain about how dark it is."  
"I don't see you jumping for joy over the dark," Red grumbled. He turned the heating unit up a notch, sighing happily. Now that temperature was secure...   
"Don't waste the batteries," Purple muttered, still gazing at the screen. How he'd seen Red try to turn the lights up brighter was a mystery to the Soldier. "We'll need them later..." Again, violet eyes sought the directional confirmation of the screen. "This way... looks like we're getting closer."  
Red shivered, despite the warmth from his heat unit. "Can you tell if she's...?"  
"No... I can't."  
"Oh..." Red kicked a snowdrift irritably. They'd come into a hilly place. How Ivy had managed to come this far, he didn't know. She was so small... to them anyway. She was taller than any other Irken at the moment, standing an even four feet. Only a foot and seven inches separated her from her two guardians. Mother of Irk... Red could barely remember when he'd been able to hold her in one hand. A faint smile came to him when he remembered her indignant reaction to his hold. That bite mark had scarred, he reflected. If anything, Ivy was a fighter. She could survive this insane cold. No matter what Purple said. "Why haven't we found her by now?"  
Purple sighed. "She's probably just farther off than we'd thought, Red," he muttered, checking the screen yet again. "If you're so impatient maybe you should try putting that hideously loud voice of yours to work," he said sarcastically.  
"All right," Red answered, obviously not hearing Purple's cynical tone. In the darkness, he cupped his hands over his mouth, breathed in the frozen air and yelled with all his might.   
"IVY!!"  
"Red!!" Purple hissed, whirling around. "Don't DO that!! I was being sarcastic!! You'll cause something... I don't know, something BAD to happen!!" There was panic where scorn had been originally.   
Crimson eyes rolled. "Please. Like everything is my fault," he scoffed. He called again, louder this time, despite Purple's attempts to silence him. "IVY!! WHERE ARE YO-"   
"RED SHUT UP!!"   
Both of them were silent, glaring at each other. Neither one could speak for a moment. Each tried to get their anger and frustration with the other under control before they uttered anything they'd regret later. Purple was the one to break the silence. "Red," he muttered. "I'm so-"  
"Shh!" His apology was silenced. Red's antennae twitched frantically, as if listening to something they could just barely grasp. Soon, Purple could pick it up as well. A low-pitched, scarcely audible rumble. It soon got louder. The realization only took the two Tallests moments to reach. "Avalanche!" the Soldier shouted over the now too-loud for comfort rumble of falling snow. "Run!"  
Mechanical legs sprouted from two pods as both fled in the opposite direction. Red easily outdistanced his Student partner, but the sudden need for flight he felt clouded all other judgment the Soldier had. He heard Purple yell for him to wait, faintly, but the Student's cries for aid were soon swallowed by the roar of the snow. His mechs picked up their pace, moving through the snow with an easy, yet panicked grace. Red ran faster. Purple had been silent for what seemed like hours. Stealing a glance over his shoulder, the Soldier could see no sign of his partner, only the towering, roiling sea of white death. It was so close...  
The snow caught the Soldier then, smashing into him with a force unlike anything he'd felt before. Sky was ground, air was snow, there was nothing in that white blindness to tell one thing from another. He couldn't breathe... until, mercifully, one of the mangled mechs smacked against the button on the pod which activated a Soldier's breathing mask. As the clear bubble closed over the Tallest's head, something hard cracked into him, turning pure white to dead black.  
  
  
  
Who's the evilest person on FFN??? ^.^ To be continued!! MWAHAHAHA!!! 


	4. Empathy

IV. Empathy  
  
"Saite...? Kalui...? Saite! Kalui!"  
  
"What green say?"  
  
"Hush! She is having a nightmare..."  
  
"Still not explain talk."  
  
"Green wrong in head."  
  
"What did I tell you? Be quiet or I will call the Matri-Mage! She is speaking her tongue... poor child's ill."  
  
The voices faded. She couldn't understand them, yet knew their intentions were good. Although, where were Red and Purple? Why weren't they answering her? Why was it so cold...? Something warm was draped over her, wrapped tightly around her shivering body. It was welcome, but not what she wanted. She wanted her teacher and instructor with her now. She didn't know where she was or how she'd gotten there. It was so cold...   
  
"Poor child... They must have abandoned her..."  
  
"Abandoned?"  
  
"Not wanted her. Left her to die Above."  
  
"Why greens not want a child? Childs precious."  
  
"Yes, yes... Keep her warm, you boys. She's very ill. I will bring the matter to the Matri-Mage."  
  
"Yes, ma'am."  
  
  
  
  
Frozen snow glittered under the weakness of the ice-world's sun. From the way the land was torn, it was obvious some great cataclysm had occurred in the past day or so. It had ripped from the hilltops, thundering down into a large patch of trees, blanketing them in six more feet of white. Rocks and other debris had cascaded down with the snow as well, pummeling the trees, even breaking some in two or three pieces. All was still, silent in the dawn air.  
  
A sudden flurry of snow erupted from alongside one of the broken trees. Moments of struggle passed before the snow was quiet again. There was a faint gasping for precious air before the struggle restarted. Now, crimson eyes, set in a bruised, exhausted green face, were visible. With one arm, the Tallest fought his way free of the icy prison, feeling pain shoot through the right ankle and shoulder. He must have slammed into the tree on that side... Gasping in both pain and fatigue, Red hauled himself out, coming to lean heavily on the tree that had trapped him. His shoulder screamed every time he tried to move it. Even through the armor he'd been injured... Letting his right arm flop limply where it was, he checked his other injuries. Bruises all over, mainly. As he tried to remove his boot, he stopped, remembering.   
  
Purple.  
  
Glancing all around proved useless. From his vantage point, Red could see little of anything. His ankle prevented him from standing, but he was a Tallest! The hoverbelt sputtered, obviously damaged from the impact. It held his weight nonetheless. He looked around wildly, trying to find any sign of the other Tallest, anything at all in this white wasteland. Chances were though, after being buried in this stuff for... a long time, Purple wouldn't be conscious, probably wouldn't even be alive. He had to at least try. If Ivy were alive, and safe now, she wouldn't appreciate him sitting by on the count of a simple ankle and shoulder injury.   
  
Anything, anything at all. A simple flash of purple armor, a twitch of an antennae... anything to show him Purple was here somewhere. Slowly, trying to save what power he still had for the hoverbelt, Red began to search over the rest of the area. He gave every inch he could a thorough sweep. There just had to be something he could find... there had to be! Hours went by, the sun gradually reaching its zenith before he collapsed with weariness he could no longer contain and a fear no Soldier training would contain. Red leaned against one of the smaller trees, panting and shivering. He'd had no luck. More than likely, Purple was dead... and so was Ivy. Red was the only one left. That frightened him.  
  
The thought of never seeing either one again was more frightening to the Soldier than the knowledge that he would probably die out here in this freezing cold. He got to his feet again, limping in a circle to keep his blood circulating what warmth was left. He kicked snow, rubbed his arms, blew on his hands, did anything he could to keep warm as long as possible. A particularly hard kick into the snow left him with a stubbed foot. Red abruptly fell back into a sitting position, holding the appendage and cursing whatever it was he'd stubbed it against. Anger took hold. With a frustrated growl, he dug into the snow, feeling his fingers numb in the stuff, trying to find the offending object.   
  
His fingers brushed something metallic.   
  
Scarcely daring to hope, Red dug more frantically into the snow, sending it flying left and right. Bit by bit, a disturbing sight was unearthed. Red sat back, staring at it with a mix of disgust and relief. A purple banded wristguard, still attached to its owner's arm, lay half buried in the snow, the long, delicate fingers splayed limply. It looked almost as if the arm had been ripped off, though it was easy to see the arm merely vanished under the white.   
  
Setting his jaw, Red dug more determinedly now, almost desperate to free the other Tallest. If there was any chance Purple was still alive... Bit by bit, the rest of the Student emerged from the snow. He was pale, exposed skin having a bluish twinge from the cold. As Red tugged him free, pulling him up to lay on his back beside the Soldier, Red noted how dented the chest plate was. That wasn't a good sign. Anything strong enough to beat up a Tallest's armor was strong enough to cause internal damage as well. Tallest Red was no med worker. He had no idea how to repair even a cut.   
  
Nervously, he flicked one of Purple's antennae, trying to get a response. There was a very soft intake of breath but nothing more. At least he knew Purple was alive... However, neither of them could survive for long out here. He flicked the other Tallest's antennae again, this time making Purple's eyelids flutter a little. There were no ideas in Red's mind on how to get out of this mess. That was usually Purple's job. He sighed and huddled up against the log again, shifting every once in a while and nudging Purple's antennae with his good foot. Anything to keep alive.   
  
  
  
  
She sat upright, completely awake for once in what seemed a long while. It was dark, but warm. Someone had covered her in something that felt like a blanket. Her curled antennae pricked, telling her someone else was here in this dark place with her. Someone small. "Hello...?" she called, snapping her mouth shut at the hoarse slur that came out instead of her usual voice.   
  
There was a soft squeaking sound from somewhere nearby, followed by a soft patter of tiny feet. Scared now, she pulled the blanket tightly around her. It was still cold here. Where ever she was. How had she gotten here...? She remembered running through the snow... lying down under a bush... but why had she been running? Why weren't Red and Purple with her? She didn't feel good. As she was lying back down to try and sleep again, the feet patter returned, this time with light. A torch. Something she'd only read about in books.   
  
Green eyes wide, Ivy sat up, afraid of what was coming to see her. Her fear soon left her. The little Irken lay inside a small cave, its floor sandy and its walls dry and warm. Standing at the tunnel entrance were four creatures smaller than any Irken Ivy had ever seen. They walked on two legs, like Irkens, but were in a shape resembled the squirrel creatures Ivy had seen in pictures. Only, their heads were larger and their tails smaller and less bushy. The two largest ones were covered in a dark brown, curled hair, with large ears and gleaming black eyes almost as large as their heads. One of them was decorated in black stones, polished and shaped to be jewelry, and carried an oddly shaped staff. The two others were small, having straight, white hair instead. Their eyes were smaller than the darker colored creatures. They carried the torches.   
  
Ivy shivered. Their gazes frightened her. Her hated sense flared up again. She could tell they were only here to speak with her, not here to hurt her or eat her as she had originally thought. Her sense told her they had a way to communicate, a way to break the language barrier in a way Irkens had never used. This intrigued her.  
  
The creature with the staff approached her, trilling curiously to the others, who squeaked in response. It walked with a limp, but did not lean on the staff. Two green stones, no bigger than pebbles, were clutched in its staff-less hand. One of the stones was set before Ivy, the other was kept in the creature's hand. After a few motions on the creature's part, the Irken picked up the small stone, careful not to lose it. Purple had taught her a bit of diplomacy. The creature squeaked to the stone it held, moving the tip of the staff around it in strange patterns. This went on for a while, until both stones glowed faintly in the torchlight.   
  
"I thought it would never work! Ah, bless the Sun! I'm getting too old for this..."  
  
Ivy jerked, staring stunned at the creature with black stones. It... it had... "You speak Irken...?" she croaked, trembling. Despite her sense, she was still frightened. "How...?"  
  
"Irken... that's your language?" the one with black stones asked. It sounded old. "Ah, yes... I see now." Its huge eyes were shut. "Ivy. Your name is Ivy. You are from a place called Irk."  
  
Another terrified jerk. "How did you know that?" Ivy swallowed. That thing... how had it known all that stuff about her? She glanced down at the stone and dropped it defiantly, folding her arms. "There! Now you don't know nothing!"  
  
To her surprise, the black stone creature tipped its head at her and continued speaking Irken. "Poor thing, I have frightened you. Forgive me." The creature bowed its head. "This must all be strange to you. We apologize for scaring you."  
  
"How... how'd I get here...? Where's Purple? Where's Red? Did you do something to them?" she cried, her voice beginning to lose the croak.   
  
The stone-wearer shook its head. "Our males found you in the Above without protection. You were by yourself and were near freezing. They brought you down here. Please, little one, calm down. You are still weak." It turned to the two white creatures, whom Ivy assumed were male. "You two, Gos, Kep. Go get something for her to drink. Something warm. Go!" The males bowed their heads and scampered out. Stone-wearer, who was more than likely female, turned her head back to Ivy. "My manners escape me, I am Ki, Matri-Mage of this colony. We are Hinin. And this is our world you green... Irks have landed on."  
  
"Irkens..." Ivy corrected instantly, trailing off as she tried to absorb all this. She huddled up under the blanket, still afraid. Why weren't Red and Purple here...? What was she supposed to do without them...?  
  
Ki, that was her name, blinked up at the little Irken. "We will take care of you as long as they are gone," she answered the unspoken question. "I will also send a few troops of males out to search for any sign of these two you have such deep attachment to."  
  
Again, Ivy cowered back. "How do you know all that stuff? Do you have some kind of data on me?" Her mind was racing for any logical solution, while part of it kept trying to reach out and prod this Ki's mind for answers.  
  
A chirping laugh. "No little one, I am empathic. As are all Matri-mages. As are you."  
  
  
  
  
Maybe it had been suicide to come out here. But, as usual, Red hadn't listened to Purple's warnings. His hotheadedness and the indulgence of a child's whim had gotten them all killed.  
  
The sun was past its zenith, but the temperature was still below freezing. He'd gotten up several times to keep the blood moving as best he could through his veins. There was little he could do for the other Tallest, who seemed content to remain unconscious and freeze. Ice was crystallizing on the Student's pale face. Red had tried, as best he could, to keep both of them warm. He knew it wasn't working. They'd both die here.   
  
And Ivy was most likely already dead.   
  
If he hadn't been a Soldier... Red would have cried. Any Soldier in his position would have felt the same. You find a few things that are the dearest, most precious things in the world to you, and they are suddenly taken from you with hideous swiftness that leaves you no time to grieve. His fists clenched. How dare his training prevent him from mourning? How dare it?   
  
There were times in his old life, he reflected, staring down at Purple's half-dead form, that he'd envied those who felt. They seemed so uninhibited by anything. Whereas, he, his life, was fully governed by the rigidity of the Soldier Class rules. Ivy had been a way for him to almost forget those rules, to be freer. But now...  
  
Now what?  
  
Now he was going to die.  
  
The temperature was dropping as the sun inched closer to the horizon. There wasn't anything he could do to keep either one of them any warmer. They weren't going to last the night. Why no one had come to find them was a complete mystery. It was getting harder and harder to stay conscious. He kept hallucinating. Once, he could have sworn he'd seen Ivy in Tallest uniform, twirling gracefully across the snow, light in her green eyes. How dare fate taunt him like this! How dare it make him conjure up these thoughts of impossibilities! How dare it...   
  
Red sat down against a log, leaning back. He felt his eyes closing, but he didn't care anymore. Everything he'd actually cared about was dead. Why did fate force him to live now? He wouldn't let fate control his life any longer.   
  
Tallest Red fell asleep, the cold working its deadly way into his system as many pairs of dark eyes looked on.  
  
  
  
  
In the dim of a cavern, dull violet eyes fluttered, straining against the weight of their lids. He had no idea where he was, why he was there, or why he hurt so badly. When he tried to sit up, small hands pushed him back down onto the soft pile of furry bedding beneath him. "It's okay, Pur..." a soft, familiar voice soothed. "S'okay..."  
  
"Ivy...?" Now he forced his eyes to open. Disbelief made him stare without blinking for too long. He stared at her until his eyes were in as much pain as his chest. "Ivy-tam!"   
  
She leaned over and gently wrapped her little arms around his neck. Tears were in her eyes. "They said you were dying... you and Red..." Ivy choked on her words. "I... you... you came after me..."  
  
Purple nodded faintly, his eyes shut. He didn't trust his voice. The blankets he had were warm, Ivy was with him, he was alive. That was all that mattered. Ivy kept her hold on him, not wanting to let go. Her tears were warm against his still-freezing skin. How in the world had she come back to him? She'd been dead... frozen in the snow... and now she was here, crying into his neck because he was here with her.   
  
A scuffling noise in the dark.  
  
His antennae perked. "What...?" His voice cracked. Again, her hands forced him to stay down in the warm coverings. Again, he ventured a look around. There were tiny creatures surrounding them. Beady eyes set in coats of either white or dark brown. Some carried burning sticks. All of them stared at him. He could feel the familiar threads of panic riding in his mind. Were they here to harm them? Why was Ivy so calm?   
  
One of them stepped forward, a look of definite dislike on its furred face. It wore strange, black stones in a necklace and walked with a cane. Ivy rose, entwining her fingers as best she could with his. To his complete shock, the creature began speaking Irken. "Hm. He's alive. That's more than we expected..." it said, its tone lofty.   
  
"Red...? Is Red all right...?" Ivy's little hand tightened on his.   
  
The one wearing stones snarled. "Unfortunately! He killed one of our best warriors!" Another cold, calculating stare at Purple. "If this one is anything like him..." Black eyes shut. "No... but the possibility... BAH!" It glared. "HIM. HE can live. The other will be sent to the Pit."  
  
There was a small, chorus of squeaked cheers. Purple was confused. What were these creatures? Why were they talking about a pit? Where was Red...? And why was Ivy so afraid? He squeezed her hand with his fingers, trying to be more of a comfort, but she remained paralyzed. He bit his tongue, fighting the pain in his chest, sitting up to hold her. Ivy buried her face in his shoulder, shaking. "What... where's Red...?" he asked, noting with embarrassment the weakness in his voice.  
  
"Why should you care?" the stone-wearer barked, shooting him a look of complete contempt. "He is a monster. Trained not to feel and to disregard the few things he is capable of really experiencing. How could you care for an abomination like that? How can you allow her to love him?"   
  
Ivy stiffened in his arms. "Pur doesn't tell me what I can and can't feel," she growled. "Red's my 'structor! I love him and I know he loves me. You can't... you can't keep someone from loving their teacher." Purple tightened his hold on her. She acted so brave, even though he could tell she feared for their lives.   
  
Stone-wearer narrowed its eyes. "I don't understand how you can tolerate that beast... If you don't wish his demise, you will stay away from the Pit, little one. Your mind will be hurt too much by your talent and his pain." With that, the creatures departed, save a plump one. It approached them hesitantly, holding something in its paws. With a squeak, it offered it up to Ivy, lapsing into hesitating Irken.  
  
"She... she is ha... harsh," it said, timidly looking down at what it held. "He... he your... tee.. cher... is hurt... hurting. This... this will... help... help the pain..."  
  
A small smile came to Ivy's lips at the broken, tentative offer. She delicately took the item from black paws. "It is to eat?" she asked, taking care to speak clearly and slowly for the little creature's sake.   
  
The creature shook its head. "Is... is mi... mixed in... warm... a warm drink." Large ears perked at chattering coming from deeper in what seemed to be a network of caverns. "I... will... bring some for him. Be back..." With that, it scurried off, an urgency in its steps.   
  
Seeing it go, Purple lay back down, having trouble breathing without pain. Ivy was beside him, tucking the blankets tighter around him, holding his fingers, just generally trying to be near him. "You didn't mean all that stuff..." she asked quietly. "about... shooting me into space... did you?"  
  
By Irk... Not now. Not while Red might be being killed in some pit. Not while his chest hurt like this. Not after he'd just found her again. "No..." he murmured. "Irk knows I didn't... Ivy-tam... I... I'm so sorry. I didn't mean a word of it! I swear by Irk... I should never have said those things..." He didn't know what else to say. Anything else would sound like an excuse, and there was no excuse for what he'd said about her.  
  
"I'm sorry too," Ivy whispered. She held his hand up to her cheek, using his wrist guard to hide the tears on her face. "I ran away and made you get hurt... and... I gave Red the slushy ball..."  
  
"Ivy..." He gently freed his hand from her grasp and ran his fingers lightly over her antennae as he had when she had been younger. "Ivy-tam... don't you blame yourself. It was my fault... and Red's. We said those awful things... you had the right to be upset like that..." He pulled her into as tight a hug as he could manage. "Don't blame anyone but us..."  
  
She shook. "I... I don't want Red to die, Pur..."   
  
"Neither do I..."  
  
  
  
  
"Don't you dare touch me with your slarking filthy paws, you sorry excuses for dust rats!"   
  
"I see you're feeling better."  
  
Red snarled. "What's it to you? You already said you're going to kill me anyway."  
  
Before him, the furry creature wearing stones narrowed its eyes. About ten white creatures gathered behind it, primitive spears at the ready. They chattered amongst themselves as their tails lashed with the anticipation of battle. "We prefer our combatants to be," the stone-wearer began, pausing to recall the Irken word. "what is your word for it...? Oh, yes... vigorous, in order to provide the males with the entertainment required to keep their small minds busy."  
  
"You kill things to keep your males occupied?" he sneered. Normally, not one of these things would be left alive by now. But after Irk knew how many days of being chained in this dark cave with healing limbs, Red was too tired to put up much more than a verbal fight. He had gathered, from what that rock-covered female said, that Purple was still alive and being looked after somewhere. Apparently, he was being treated better than Red was. Why the two weren't allowed to meet remained a mystery to him. You killed something around here, and you were hidden away from all else. "And you call me a barbarian monster..."  
  
At this, the female bristled. Giving an angry squeak, she jammed her cane tip into his bootless ankle. Pain shot up his leg. Any lesser Irken would have cried out, but Red, being a Tallest, bit his tongue and showed his teeth to the creature. They had put his dislocated shoulder back into place, as well as wrapped his sprained ankle. Though, if this female didn't stop stabbing him there, the ankle would never heal right, despite the wrappings. He couldn't afford to walk with a limp. "Hmpf," she snorted, removing her cane. "You have a tolerance for pain that your friend does not. Pity it won't help you when your time comes."  
  
He squirmed against his bonds. "You're hurting Purple? Why? Wha'd he do? Name more books than one of your scholars?" If he was going to die, he'd die with as many insults piled on these things as Irkenly possible. "That is, if you even have books."  
  
"Gah! That's it!" She glared up at him, anger causing her deep eyes to gleam. "Your day to die comes tomorrow!" With that final threat, she scurried away, the white ones trailing after her as a guard.  
  
The torches were taken, leaving Red to brood his fate in silent darkness. It didn't matter what sort of creature they threw at him. As long as he had a weapon, he could kill it. He could kill it with his wrist guards alone if he had to. Thank Irk the little things hadn't taken them. He needed battle plans... but how was he supposed to do that if he didn't know what they would throw at him? Grumpy and hurting, Red leaned against the wall of the cave, huddling up as best he could. He supposed he'd just have to make it up as he went along...  
  
His antennae perked. Something was coming down the tunnel. He tensed, straining to hear better. Soon enough, a light appeared, coming closer to him. "Who's there?" he barked.  
  
"M... me..." squeaked a voice in tentative Irken. "I... my name... is Vim. I... Ki... she is... she doesn't like you." The creature appeared around a corner. It was another female, smaller than that stone-wearing Ki, as well as rounder. She carried a small steaming cup in her paws. "I... your ank... ankle hurts... This will... make better..." She approached him, her head bowed slightly in respect, holding the cup towards him. "Here... Drink."  
  
Red allowed himself a small smirk. At least some of these things knew how to treat a Tallest. "You're going to have to help me," he said. "I can't reach the cup."  
  
Her eyes widened in a sudden fear. "S-sorry!" she stammered, hurrying to fix her mistake. "For-forgive me!" She was climbing up onto a small rock shelf at eye level with the Soldier. "Here..." It was offered again, in trembling paws.  
  
"Eh... Didn't mean to scare you..." he muttered, thankful the dim light from the torch in the hall didn't show his embarrassment. "Thanks for... the whatever it is in that cup..."  
  
"Welcome! Please, drink..." Her Irken was improving as she repeated words. She took a few steps closer, holding the cup at an angle that allowed Red to actually drink it. He must have made a face at its bitterness. "It... taste bad. Drink it... all. Make better!"  
  
He managed to. "Ugh..." Red gagged, trying to hide his disgust in the flavor. "Maybe I should've tried it before I thanked you... whatever your name is."  
  
"Vim."  
  
"Yeah, okay, thanks Vim." He reclined against the wall behind him. The throbbing pain in his ankle was already subsiding. "Hey... um, that... Kit or Keep thingy--"  
  
"Ki."  
  
"Yeah, her. Does she have Pur chained up like this?"  
  
Vim tipped her head to the side, blinking her huge eyes. "No," she replied finally, scratching the base of one ear. "Something... wrong with his... chest. Healers are... um... confused. He is... breathing... badly."  
  
Red's antennae flicked. Bad news. Great. More bad news. Finding out one of your only friends was doing poorly on the same day you found out exactly how you were going to die. "Will he live?"   
  
Another ear scratch. "Healers... aren't sure..." the little creature admitted. There was silence a while before she spoke again. "You have... good healers, better... than ours." She examined her paws. "He... needs them."  
  
He frowned. "That's going to be hard." Miserably, he kicked at a pebble with his good foot. "Considering that Ki has decided I'm going to die here. She's probably given Pur the same fate as me."  
  
Now Vim looked upset. "Sorry..." she murmured, her tail flicking. Suddenly, she brightened, looking up at him with a hopeful expression. "You win!" she exclaimed. "Beat the... others and you... you and... Per can leave!" Her black eyes sparkled.   
  
Red considered this for a moment. "I think you have something there..." he mused. "If I defeat whatever Ki throws at me, she'll let me and Pur go home?" He would have liked to include Ivy's name with his and Purple's... but... he had to accept that by now, she was truly dead. They would have found her if it hadn't been for that blasted Ki creature. All the more reason for him to show her up and defeat his opponent. "I like that idea." Vengeance for Ivy's death would be his.  
  
"Good!" Vim glanced around, her ears perked. "I... I will come back with... with news of... of your... a... a..."  
  
"Opponent?"  
  
"Yes! I will come back!"  
  
Red watched her go. She seemed so sure that he would prevail. Ivy had... Ivy used to have that unwavering faith in him. And he had let the child down. He'd let her die a cold, lonely death in the snow. Red bit his lip, drawing a thin line of blood drip into his mouth. He wouldn't let Purple down like that. Ivy never would have let him forget it.  
  
  
  
  
"Ivee."  
  
She uncurled slowly. Vim was looking down at her, a fearful look in her black eyes. Beside her under the thick furs, Purple shivered, his pale face wincing as he breathed. "Is he okay?" she asked, disentangling herself from her teacher's grasp. "He's not... gonna die is he...?"  
  
"Not... Per. Your... ins... your Red. He's... the Pit."  
  
Cold that wasn't from the air in the cavern settled in Ivy's chest. "Where is this pit?" she asked. She was already on her feet, her small hands wrapping the furs tightly around her teacher to substitute for her absence. He coughed slightly, a few flecks of blood appearing around his mouth. Ivy wiped them away gently. This kept happening, and it worried her, as did his pain in breathing. She hoped he'd be all right.  
  
Vim let out a gasp of horror. "Ivee! Em... empaths... don't go there! It... they hurt!" Paws gripped her gloved hand. "You will hurt too much!"  
  
"I have to see Red. You stay here with Pur. Okay?"  
  
The furry head shook. "My sons... stay. I am co... coming!" True to her word, two young males stepped out of the shadows, their white fur standing out in the torchlight. Ivy had learned their names. The elder brother was Kep, the younger Gos. Except for the size, Ivy saw no difference between the two. Black eyes glanced nervously from Purple to herself, then back to their mother. She nodded to them before snatching up and torch and hurrying off down a tunnel. Ivy jogged after her, holding the hem of her green dress up to enable herself to move faster.   
  
She ran after Vim, down a twisting, wandering tunnel that was dark, save for her guide's torch. From the way the little creature moved, Ivy could tell she was afraid. Vim's fear was evident in her stride, and in her mind. Frantically, Ivy pulled back, fighting to remain in her own mind, with her own thoughts and feelings. She tripped over a rock in the path, her mind elsewhere. Vim skidded to a halt, hearing her soft cry. Ivy got back up. "I... I'm okay, Vim," she mumbled, checking her hands for injury. "Let's... let's keep going."  
  
Her guide nodded, then ran on. Ivy hiked up her dress once more, following. She hoped they would be in time. Maybe if she were there, Red would be okay. There had to be something she could do to keep him safe. After all, he had protected her for eight years. So, why shouldn't she try and return his aid? She had already forgiven him for what he had said. She had feared for him too badly not to have. Please Red, she thought, please... be okay for me...  
  
  
  
  
You didn't have to speak another language to know when you were being booed, Red decided.   
  
The choice of weapons was the only thing to his liking. He only got one choice, but that was all he needed. Once of the five weapons offered was shaped something like a bati staff. Although, instead of a pronged top, it had a single blade, like the other end. No matter. He could use it. The crowd made odd noises that Red assumed was their form of laughter. This he ignored. Let them laugh. The staff was sturdy enough for his purpose.   
  
According to Vim, he would have to fight several foes in succession. The first would not be hard, due to the fact he had only recently healed and the fact the males thought such a skinny creature would be easily killed. If he kept winning, the opponents would become more and more difficult. Though, he had only to defeat four before he was declared the overall winner, thus releasing Purple and himself from custody.   
  
He was indeed in a pit. A very large pit. There were two doors at either end of it, and seating at the top edges for the male furred creatures to watch. The bottom, where he stood, was black sand with darker patches. Red assumed those patches were where the losers had been standing.   
  
Such a sport disgusted him. At no point in their recorded history had Irkens even remotely considered killing for entertainment. It made him sick. Looking above him, he saw only white coats glinting in the torchlight. All the spectators were male. Not a single female was among them. He found that odd. Vim hadn't said anything about her race being sexist. Red shrugged it off.   
  
There wasn't any more time to think.  
  
Across from his position, the other door slid open on squeaky pulleys. There was something seething behind it, something living and thirsting for his rose-colored blood. He could barely make out a tangled mass of writhing limbs. Red took a tighter hold on his staff as his opponent moved out to face him. It had more legs than Red cared to count, each one sliding around its slender body protectively. The legs were armored, and from the way they moved, he could tell the body was not. That was its weak point. He could see fangs protruding from what he assumed was its mouth. They were a yellow-gray color, similar to the rest of the body, coated with slimy-looking brown hairs. The crowd was making a chorus of chanting squeaks. At their noises, the creature stood on two hind legs that had remained hidden beneath the web of others. Two more clawed at the air. Each leg was armed with claws as long as Red's antennae. Each claw was tainted with blood.   
  
This thing moved slowly. If he circled on his robotic legs, he shouldn't have a problem evading it until he was ready to whack its head off. It gave a weird gurgling chatter, lumbering towards him. Red's robotic legs shot out, carrying him safely out of harm's way. It cried out again, some of its protective legs moving to the ground to chase after him. He smirked. Now, if he could get it to do that in front of him...  
  
Something struck him in the back, knocking him to the ground. Red rolled, his hands tightening on the staff. His back stung where the thing's claw had gouged through his armor. Twisting around, Red could see the claw had barely broken the top layer of skin, so he was safe for the moment. His robotic legs came out.  
  
The thing's protective legs came down in order to chase him. This was what Red had been waiting for. In a swift movement, the staff came down on a squishy spot. The thing whistled, obviously hurting. Red growled. The creature's body was thick. Violently, he wrenched the staff to the side, half-severing its upper section from the rest of it. Black blood spurted. More whistling of pain as more legs attempted to hide the hole from view. He took the chance and stabbed its other side.   
  
It staggered backwards, whistling, bleeding, and the loser. The crowd hissed down at him. He didn't care. Raising his staff over his head in both hands, Red yelled back, grinning widely. A Soldier never forgot how to fight.  
  
In another moment, the pulley door opened again. A larger creature loomed in the shadows. This one was more heavily armored than the last, with thick plates and long legs. It looked so horribly disproportioned that Red nearly laughed. Its body was squat, with a tiny, square head and slender legs shaped like the ones in his backpod. It had a stump of a tail armed with hefty spines. Every part of it appeared covered in the plates. That made him groan.   
  
Before him, the creature opened its mouth, revealing long, serrated teeth. Its plates stood on end, rattling. Above, the crowd went wild, squeaking, chattering, making any noise it could. It was obvious that this thing had killed many already, and thus was a favorite in this awful pit. Red got up on his robotic legs, preparing for battle. For Ivy, he thought grimly. For her sake, he'd kill anything put before him. No matter if she were dead, he still owed it to her.   
  
Red charged it, brandishing his staff. It rushed to meet him, its fangs bared.  
  
  
  
  
By the time Ivy got to the pit, she knew she was too late to help.   
  
"He... defeated two... foes!" Vim chittered, gazing down at the arena from the mouth of the tunnel. "Is.. winning!"  
  
Ivy shuddered fiercely. This place was horrible. Death hung in the air, as did feelings of hate, violence, cruelty and a lust to for killing. The emotions assaulted her mind, tugging at her awareness, pulling her down to a place she did not want to be. She felt ill. Vim pawed at her leg, trying to reassure her. Numbly, she made her way down to the railing that lined this horrible pit. The males around her let out not so subtle hisses at she and Vim's presence, as females were obviously not allowed here.   
  
Her little gloved hands gripped the railing, green eyes wide and staring. Red was down there, she could see him. Two bodies of creatures Ivy had never seen before lay slain on the floor, their dark blood mixing with light-colored sand, and rose-colored blood. It was like a scene from Ivy's nightmares. Only she couldn't wake up from this one, to have Red and Purple comfort her tears away. Purple was dying of something she barely understood and Red was busy.   
  
Frightened, she looked down at him. He was crouched in a corner, supporting himself on only three mechanical legs. The forth was wedged into the mouth of a new horror, this one shaped like a great serpent with great, shoveling claws all along its sleek, furred sides. She froze, trembling with fear. Red was bleeding from wounds Ivy failed to see. No one would stop this, she knew that much from the roiling emotions around her. Vim pressed up against her side, shaking almost as badly as she. "Thi... I seen that... one. It kill many..." the furry one murmured.   
  
"Red..." Ivy said softly. "M'gonna lose him... he's gonna die..." Tears formed in her eyes. "And Pur's going to die too..." She had to do something! There was no way she could bear to lose them again. "RED!" she screamed, her voice echoing in the cavern. "DON'T DIE!"  
  
His head jerked up, pained red eyes locking on her green gems. For a moment, the two stared at one another, something private passing between Student and Soldier. Then, Red struggled to his feet, leaning heavily on his weapon. His gaze locked with hers again, searching her green depths for something only he knew to look for. She wiped away a few tears, nodding to him.   
  
The serpent struck, only to find its lower jaw spiked by the Irken's weapon. Shrieking, the creature wrenched away, one of its claws hooking around Red's legs, landing him flat on his back. He didn't move.   
  
Ivy's hands were pressed tightly to her chest, her eyes even larger than they had been earlier. Soft words came from her lips, meant for no one but the Irken she stared so intensely at. Amazingly, his antennae twitched faintly, as if he could really hear her voice. As the serpent struck again, he rolled sideways. His foe's jaws buried themselves in rose stained sand instead of green flesh. Red was up now, teetering on three robotic legs. His weapon struck and came away with a few spines attached to a glob of brown serpent meat. Then, he was running, each robotic stride sending visible, physical, pain through his body. Behind his limping form, the serpent snapped its strong jaws, gaining on the wounded Soldier. It knocked him down in a simple flick of its head.   
  
This time, Red showed no signs of getting back up. He lay on the sand, crumpled and broken, like the toy Soldier he'd given Ivy. It had been stepped on by a technician, then had never marched across her floor again, despite Red's clumsy attempts to fix its fractured circuits. The memory made more tears run down the child's pale green cheeks. She didn't need another broken doll.   
  
Trembling horribly, Ivy focused on his face once more. She felt his pain as clearly as if it were her own, each injury lacerating her tender young skin. Hesitantly, she did as she had before, pulling the emotion of pain away from his mind, letting it fade safely out into the air around her. It took almost too much effort on the part of the Irken child. By the time Red was able to move again, she was near collapse. Vim, the constant presence against her leg, had to stabilize her before she fell on the hard, cold stone.   
  
Even with his unseen aid, Red was in a losing fight. She knew it, he knew it, and the serpent knew it. It struck again, and again, in faster succession, its head weaving mercilessly. The Soldier kept fending off the blows to the best of his ability. He had never lost a fight before, never intended to do so. He was just so... tired... Blood from his wounds colored the sand. It hurt, looking up at Ivy. To know he would fail with her watching. To know she would see her unfailing Red be slain.   
  
When the serpent struck next, he was almost ready to accept his fate. The world slowed to a fraction of its normal pace. All the sounds around him were muffled into a blur that only the horrified screams of Ivy could pierce. In slow motion, he saw the serpent strike, and his staff swing up to meet it. His pulse hummed in his head, loud, but never drowning out Ivy's voice. A gash appeared in the furred throat. The serpent kept coming, its mouth wide. Red threw himself sideways, cutting a new, horizontal hole in the thing's neck. It hissed. The head moved from side to side, trying to locate him. He dropped to his knees. This was it. He had to kill it now or be killed. Arm muscles straining, he heaved his staff up into its ribs, pushing it through the body as hard and with as much force as he had left. The serpent let out a loud shriek, writhed on the staff... and then fell, limp, as death took its hold.   
  
Red didn't move for a moment. When the dust had begun to settle from the serpent's fall, he cautiously rose, dazed after the ordeal. He ached. Crimson eyes sought jade eyes, found them, and then softened slightly in a half-smile. He fell then, collapsing down onto the sand with a soft puff of displaced earth.   
  
  
  
  
...... "Take them and go. There is a tunnel that comes up almost within the boarders of your camp. You will have an escort of our finest, as well as your friend Vim."  
  
"Thank you Ki..."  
  
"Bah. Don't tell the rest of your kind. I doubt those two will remember this, thank the Sun. They won't wake up unless they get medicinal care, you realize."  
  
"Yes, Ki."  
  
"Good. They will both last the journey there. It isn't a long one, using our roadways. Get going though. You will need all the time you can spare."  
  
"Ki?"  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"Why are you...?"  
  
"Don't ask me that, Ivy. I don't wish to speak of this right now. Be careful in your life. Your gift may cause you pain." ......  
  
Ivy turned the conversation over and over in her head. She was safe at last in her quarters in the Irken encampment. The Tallest were in the medical building, their needs being seen to by the great med-teams of the Armada. Their journey along the roads of the subterranean Hinin had been uneventful. Vim had come with them, ordering their escort around like they were her own children, instead of veteran warriors. The memory brought a little smile to her face. However, the memory of their goodbye banished all trace of joy from her young visage. She would miss Vim. The furred female had been her only friend in that dark place, her only comfort during Red's fight and Purple's lapses from consciousness to unconsciousness. This new hurt would heal in time.   
  
In her hands was the old Soldier figure. By anyone's reckoning, eight was too old for dolls. But this one was different. Maybe it was the fact that it was broken. Or maybe it was something she just couldn't grasp. Either way, the doll seemed to practically beg for her love from its sad, immobile position in her hands. She turned it a few times, studying its fragile make. So easy to break, and so hard to put back together again. Quietly, Ivy gazed into the blank red eyes of the doll she held. These eyes would never show their pain, nor would they glow with love. Yet, she cared for the little thing all the same. Someday, she would have to take it to be fixed. Then, maybe it would work again, it would move and dance and show emotion in its eyes as it once had.  
  
Her antennae perked. There were footsteps outside her door. They were not the footsteps of a healthy guard, but the slow, apprehensive tread of someone being mindful of their footing. Her little body went tense. The door to her room opened with a muted hiss.   
  
"Hey, Vee..."  
  
It was hard not to rush over and hug Red close to her. He looked so frail, his injuries wrapped securely, and his body supported on his robotic legs and hover belt combined. She was afraid of breaking him with too tight a hold or too hasty a run to his side. Any miscalculation on her part could result in his pain increasing. She moved sideways on her bed, giving him room to rest. Red gave her a grateful smile, sinking down on the soft surface beside her. To her surprise, he grabbed her and held her tightly, nearly crushing her against his chest armor. His strength was a shock. She hugged him back, her own meager power in stark comparison with his.   
  
"You know I never meant what I said, right?"  
  
She nodded. "Thank you..." Ivy whispered.   
  
Red seemed confused. "For what, Vee?" With the utmost care, his fingers lifted her chin so he could see her green eyes. He wore a soft smile.  
  
"For coming after me..." The little Irken squirmed, uncomfortable.   
  
"Oh. That's nothing, Ivy. You don't need to thank me for something like that. That's like thanking me for making sure you have a bed. It's not necessary." He smirked, giving her shoulder a light squeeze. "Come on! Pur's up. Wanna go see him? Maybe we can bring him a ball of slush."  
  
Ivy forced a laugh.   
  
It was a visible effort for Red to get up, though he made it a point to say nothing on the subject. It just wasn't Red's way. Ivy followed him attentively. He may not have asked for this, but his whole posture begged for her to stay near him. Irkens parted hastily, and Red nodded a nearly unnoticeable thanks to them. He never uttered a word about fearing for her life. The walk to Purple's room wasn't far. Even so, it took longer than Ivy would have thought to get there.   
  
Her teacher was sitting upright, in bed, his fragile wrists attached to monitors. His skin had returned to a more normal shade of green. Though his chest armor was removed for the marks of surgery to heal, it was apparent he would heal soon. The Tallest had a book open across his knees, his face set in concentration. When he saw them, though, he smiled widely, setting the book aside to make room to hold his student. As she hugged him, Ivy made certain to hold him more gently than she had Red. Purple could shatter where Red would only break.   
  
"Ivy-tam," Purple sighed into her antennae. "Thank Irk... Thank Irk we're all here now..."  
  
The other Tallest sat down heavily on the bed, allowing himself a few complaints of soreness. "Yeah, Vee, next time you run off, it better be on Irk," he muttered, though he wasn't angry. "I'm too experienced to be beating up crazy alien things on your behalf, kid. And Pur here's never been in any shape to stand up to the forces of nature, even for his student."   
  
"If I had a stick, I'd jab you in the eye." Purple was snickering anyway, running his fingers through Ivy's antennae.   
  
"And then I'd rip it out of your hands and beat you with it," Red said, folding his arms smugly. "So there."  
  
The little female curled closer to her teacher, watching both Tallest with a careful eye. She felt such an overwhelming love for them right now. They had paid for their hurtful argument in physical pain, and tried to make it up to her by coming for her, defending her, and protecting her as they always had. Her life had never been a lie. That she was thankful for. She was thankful for their protection, and their love. More thankful than she had ever been. She could feel how much they loved her. The emotion radiated in her mind like the warmth from Irk's sun, or the heat from the vents in each room. Empathy, Ki had called it. What exactly it was didn't worry her. All she worried now was keeping her Tallest alive, letting them heal back to their old selves.  
  
Ivy let their conversation wash over her, merely basking in their care. 


End file.
